Are you coming back?
by dollopheaddemigodonanadventure
Summary: Jason finally returns to New Rome and Reyna doesn't recognize the person in front of her. Jason has lost his memories but something about Reyna is just so familiar. Can Reyna and Jason overcome his amnesia and find their way back to each other?
1. Chapter 1

He steps off the ship, and he looks so cool and collected, just the way he did when he addressed the Senate. He's donned his purple cloak, so maybe he hasn't forgotten this life. She believes that he hasn't, after all Percy still remembered his girlfriend.

"Jason Grace, my former colleague. I welcome you home. And these, your friends…"

But before she can finish, she feels the energy shift. The blond rushes to Percy and kisses him, then judo flips him. "If you ever leave me again, I swear to all the Gods!" she snarls.

"Ugh, yea it's good to be back," Jason comments. He introduces Piper and Leo, a little elfish boy who flashes a peace sign. "Annabeth doesn't normally judo-flip people," he says motioning at the blond girl holding Percy.

Reyna smirks, "Are you sure you're not an Amazon, Annabeth, or a Roman?" she asks.

"I only attack my boyfriend," Annabeth responds.

And Reyna turns back to the others who came off the ship, albeit reluctantly. She spent 8 months waiting for this moment, planning every detail, but now that it was here, she was terrified. What if….

She could feel the Romans watching them. She supposed that by this time they had all come to understand the way she felt about Jason, given the fact they did most things together. They were just waiting to see what she would do.

She could feel her heartbeat racing, every impulse in her body pushing her to reach out and touch him. She didn't need a kiss, just a sign of recognition. That he remembered her, how he felt about her. Unless she had read that wrong too…

But right now, she needed to put diplomacy ahead of her personal feelings. Duty first, and all. "Come we'll dine in the forum tonight. We have much to discuss. Dakota, Bobby, get some legionnaires, and set up a dining pavilion in the forum," she orders.

She turns to say something, and notices that Percy has intertwined his fingers with Annabeth's. And gods, the way he's looking at her… And before she can stop herself, she's lost in a memory.

_"__I'm not sure about Aurum. He's always so stoic and serious. Argentum, on the other hand. There's a puppy. He's always looking for a good time. And he's a little silly." Jason was saying._

_She felt defensive. No matter their differences she loved both her dogs equally. "Well it keeps things interesting. Aurum makes up for Argentum's lack of focus, and Argentum makes up for Aurum's lack of sense of humour. Together they're a complete set. And I think it's really unfair to judge them. They're great companions just the way they are."_

_Jason laughed. "Alright, alright Mama Wolf. I won't talk about your dogs anymore." _

_A moment of silence, and then… "They're a lot like you and me. Me being Argentum that is… since I'm the fun one," Jason teased._

_She rolled her eyes. "Also the silly one, incapable of focusing on the task at hand."_

_Jason half smiled at her. "That's me. And that would make you the stoic, serious one, incapable of having fun."_

_"__Hey!" she protested, and then aimed a punch at his side._

_He caught her fist, and gently, unfolded her fingers. "I also think that we complete each other," he whispered, staring at her fingers. _

_She could feel the blush creeping up the back of her neck. She wanted to pull her hand away, but mostly, she just didn't want him to stop. She was struck by the tenderness and uncertainty in his voice. "Jason…" His blue eyes snapped up to meet hers, and the clarity made her voice stick. He looked so confident, but still so unsure. And the way he was stroking her fingers made her feel like he was sending electricity down her spine. Which, given the fact that his dad was the god of lightning, would not be surprising.__"_

_I know you Reyna, you can trust me," he stated. How did he know what exactly to say to make her fears go away? One of his many talents._

_He didn't let go of her hand, but kept pulling her along the Via Praetoria towards their villas. "One day you'll believe me."_

_She wanted so much to hang on to that moment._

"…letting them into camp?!" Octavian is shouting, pulling her out of her reverie. She realizes the group is staring at her curiously. "Reyna?!" Octavian shouts.

"No, Octavian. I already ordered Dakota and Bobby to set up a dining area in the forum. We'll eat here on neutral ground."

"Oh much better!" Octavian declares in exasperation.

"Octavian, perhaps, as Augur you should make an offering to thank the gods for Jason Grace's safe return," she suggests evenly.

"That's right Octavian, go kill some teddy bears!" Percy teases.

She doesn't know whether to smirk or roll her eyes. This boy was exasperating, but he could put Octavian to his place.

Octavian looks at her with disgust and then runs off to Temple Hill.

She turns back to the group. "Percy, you really shouldn't antagonize Octavian. You're just giving him more fuel."

"Hey, I can't help the sass. Besides someone needs to cut Octavian down to size. You can't let him get away with so much Rey."

She frowns at the nickname, and then she notices Jason staring at Percy curiously, and for a moment she thinks maybe he's remembered the nickname. "You're

the new Praetor? Well then, you by all means, have the authority to tell Octavian to back off."

Her stomach sinks. Openly though, she rolls her eyes. "I wish the legionnaires would elect a more sensible Praetor."

"Hey, that's why we have you right ReyRey," Percy teases.

She stares at him hardly, not liking the nicknames. She notices Annabeth looking between her and Percy. She hopes Percy will settle Annabeth's fears. She doesn't want her thinking that there is any closeness between them. She barely knows the boy. But then Percy steps forward, and drapes his arm around her shoulders. "Come on Reyna cheer up. We just saved the camp from Armageddon, Jason's home, Annabeth's here, Hylla's here, and Frank can turn into an elephant! Everybody's happy!" Percy says joyously.

She pulls away from Percy. "Armageddon hasn't happened yet Percy and actually Hylla left this morning. And, as Praetor, maybe you want to show a bit more decorum?"

Percy just grins at her, then takes Annabeth's hand, pulling her into forum. He begins telling her about New Rome with much enthusiasm, and she notes Annabeth, doesn't look too happy about that.

"Reyna, Hazel and I will go help Dakota and Bobby," Frank said excusing himself. She wants to stop them, but before she can they've both run off.

"So Percy Jackson seems right at home," Jason states.

She smiles. "I think that as long as he has Annabeth, Percy could live on the streets for all he cares."

"Home is after all where the heart is," the girl, Piper, adds looking up and smiling at Jason.

Jason returns her smile, puts his arm around her waist, pulls her close, and kisses her forehead.

Suddenly she feels numb, and her throat feels like it's closing up. This isn't happening. She needs to get out of here.

"Reyna!" Dakota calls, running up to the group. He glances at Jason with his arm around his girlfriend, and frowns in confusion. Before he can say anything, she addresses him, "What is it Dakota? Are the preparations for dinner complete?"

"Mostly," he replies pulling his gaze back to her. "It's just the Arae are a little miffed they have to bring dinner down to the forum. They won't listen to me."

She nods. "Very well, I shall speak with them." Turning back to her guests, she says," Please go into the forum and make yourselves comfortable. I will join you momentarily." She avoids Jason's eyes, if she looks at him she knows she'll fall apart.

She retreats from the group with as much haste as dignity will permit. She knows Dakota will ask some pointed questions, but she really hopes he doesn't. She won't be able to bear the humiliation – everyone would look at her as if she was injured. She's wrapped up in her churning emotions, and before she knows it she's running as if hellhounds were chasing her. But her feet aren't taking her to the kitchen at Camp, they're pulling her to the trees behind the Praetors' Villas, and then she's climbing the biggest one hidden in a clump, and she collapses in one of the highest branches. She's heaving for air, partly from the running, but mostly because since she realized Jason has a new girlfriend, she hasn't been able to breathe properly. The feeling is familiar. She'd spent many days gasping for breath when he was missing. She hugs her stomach and pulls her knees up to her chest – a default defensive move. But she can't protect herself, because what's threatening her is inside, and she can't stop the pain from battering her heart, and closing up her lungs and her throat.

_"__Men are distractions dearests. They'll lead you astray, and when they have what they want, they'll cast you aside without a single thought."_

The woman's voice echoes in her ears now, chastising her. _You should have known this would happen. You should have known. You should have… _Over and over she scolds herself, until soon, she can breathe slightly better.

How long has she been in this tree? People would start to wonder. She needs to get back to dinner. Why was she coming to Camp anyway? Right, the Arae need some convincing. She climbs back down, but before heading to the kitchens, she crawls into her home to clean up. She washes her face, rebraids her hair, and fixes her toga and cloak. Then she stares into the mirror, and begins to carefully reconstruct her expression until it is the right amount of cold, calculated, indifferent, serious, and aloof. The pain has subsided to emptiness, and now she feels, numb, cold, and hollow. But she braces herself for the evening's dinner, determined to put the needs of her people first. With a final check to make sure her appearance is in order, she marches out of her house and down the path to the kitchens.

"I hear that you're having some difficulty with the idea of serving dinner in the forum." The Arae whoosh past her with a sudden speed in annoyance. She has gotten used to their means of communication. "Well it's either entertain the guests in the forum, or allow them to enter Camp fully armed. Which one do you think would be better for the Romans?"

The air stills, and she knows she's won the argument. "Good, I expect dinner to be served in…" What time is it now? She glances at the clock. Holy crap, 6:30? How long was she in that tree? "…half an hour."

Having resolved the matter, she heads back to the forum, making each step last extra long so she can put off facing the Greeks a while more. In time though, she arrives, and is heralded by cries of surprise.

"Reyna, where have you been?" the girl squeals, but before she can answer, Gwen rushes on, sparing her a lie she knows Gwen won't believe anyway. "Jason's back, and he seems different," she whispers conspiratorially. As if she needs to be told.

"Gwen, Reyna!" Dakota saunters up from behind and puts his arms around the girls' shoulders. He lowers his voice and says, "Let's get this dinner over and done with."

They all gather around the table, most of them laughing and chattering, but Reyna feels removed from their conversation. When dinner has been served, she clears her throat. "So perhaps, Jason Grace, you would like to recount your adventures for us." She refuses to have any familiarity with him, and to meet his eyes, trying to make them as estranged as possible.

Jason tell his tale, and when he is interrupted by Octavian, Piper shuts him up, and tells Jason to continue. Reyna feels irritated with this girl. She has no right to address her Romans as such. But she knows her irritation runs deeper than that. When Jason is done, Percy tells his story, and very soon they're all up to date with each other's adventures. Jason is impressed by Percy's achievements, thanking him for taking care of his camp whilst he was gone. She is angry: Percy has only been there for a week, most of which he has been on a quest. She's been the one taking care of his "home" – as if he still feels this way about New Rome. But she pushes these emotions aside, knowing what is expected of her, knowing that if she shows any weakness, Octavian will pounce on her.

"Well the only thing left to be discussed is what is to be done now. Obviously the Prophecy of Seven is in motion, but now we need to pick our seven heroes."

"Me!" Jason volunteers, "and Pipes, and Leo, and Annabeth."

"And me! With Frank and Hazel."

"Woah! Wait! You can't just decide who's to go on this quest!" Octavian begins to protest, but Reyna holds up her hand cutting him off.

"It would seem that you seven are the obvious choice. Juno has chosen Percy and Jason as her heroes, and it seems the Fates have also chosen you five to accompany them. I approve of this choice." Octavian stares at her speechless.

"This is ridiculous Reyna! They can't just choose who'll be going!"

"Then we shall discuss it at tomorrow's Senate meeting. Just know that you have my support," she tells the Seven.

A silence descends on the group as they contemplate their next steps.

"Well, if there's nothing more to talk about right now, Reyna, I would like to show Piper around New Rome," Jason says.

She looks at him, and she feels a rush of anger. He just got back, and instead of thinking about checking up on his friends who have been worrying about him day and night over the past 8 months, his only concern is to spend time with this girlfriend? She can feel everyone's eyes on her. Finally she says, "Fine! I suppose Percy, you too would like to show Annabeth around?

Percy beams at her. "Make sure you take her to try the hot chocolate." Then she turns around and walks out of the pavilion.


	2. Chapter 2: Hot Chocolate vs Coffee

She opens the door and walks into her empty villa turning on the lights. It's lonely in here, but she doesn't call for her dogs. Their company is not the one she desires. She walks into her bedroom and sheds the toga and cloak, but doesn't put any other clothes on, instead wrapping herself in her blanket. Then she walks into the kitchen, pours herself a glass of milk, warms it, and then stirs in a package of Carnation Hot Chocolate. Then she sits at the island and pulls a stack of papers towards her.

She picks up the first one – a proposal to modernise the aqueduct system - and begins to read through the details of the project. When she reaches the end of the page, she realises she's been so lost in thought, that she hasn't understood a single word on the page. She sighs and begins again. But all she can hear is _I know you Reyna. One day you'll believe me._ She tries to push the voice out of her head and keep reading, but after ten minutes she gives up. She picks up her hot chocolate and heads into the living room and curls up on the couch. Taking a sip, she recoils. The taste of her favourite drink is suddenly bitter in her mouth. She tries again, and she begins to feel nauseous. Sighing, she puts the cup down, and lies down in the fetal position. She closes her eyes, and a memory comes back to her.

_His blues eyes are sparkling with surprise. "You've__never had hot chocolate?" he asks incredulously._

_She shrugs. "It's not really a big deal."_

_"__Not a big deal? Not a-?! You think not enjoying the most amazing comfort drink ever created in the history of the universe is not a big deal? What?" He actually looked so confused. Like a cute baby polar bear. _

_"__Coffee is pretty comforting to me."_

_"__Coffee is a wake up drink. Hot chocolate is a sitting-on-the-couch-by-the-fire drink."_

_"__You're walking to work right now and drinking hot chocolate. According to your argument, you should be drinking coffee."_

_"__That's not the point! Besides I need comfort to go to work."_

_She shook her head. "Look I've never had an opportunity to drink hot chocolate. And because I've never had it, I don't miss it, or feel like I need to drink it."_

_"__No need to drink hot chocolate? You don't need a need. How about just drinking it for pure bliss?"_

_She sighed, seeing no point to this argument. "If it means this much to you I'll try it sometime ok?"_

_"__No, not sometime. Right now!"_

_"__Jason, I don't have time to go grab a cup of hot chocolate now. We're already late!"_

_"__Here, try mine!" He held his cup out to her._

_She looked at it, surprised. The intimacy of the offer was a bit daunting, and she shirked from the closeness he assumed was between them. They hadn't been friends that long, after all she'd only been at camp for about two months now, and they'd barely had time to actually talk like normal friends. Yet, his assumption that they were close enough to share the same drink was touching. She'd never really had a friend before. So after a moment's pause, she accepted the cup, and took a sip. _

_She could feel the warmth spreading through her from the drink, and even as it left her mouth to travel down her oesophagus, she felt the pleasant sweetness that made her think of the rare warm moments she had enjoyed. She felt a sudden contentment, and she hadn't been sure whether it was from the drink or the offer of friendship Jason had made her. _

She still doesn't know and she's beginning to mull it over when there's a loud knock on the door. She jumps off the sofa and looks at the clock. 11:00 pm. Who could that be?

The person knocks again, this time louder and more insistent. Remembering that she was only clothed in her underwear, she rushes to her bedroom and pulls on a sleep shirt.

The person knocks again, and she growls in frustration. Octavian couldn't give her five minutes of peace even at midnight.

As she pulls open the door she snarls, "I swear to the gods Octavian, the next time-" She stops as she realizes who's standing on her doorstep.

He's rubbing the back of his blond head and smiling at her a sheepishly. "I'm sorry Reyna. I know it's late. But I just finished showing Piper New Rome, and thought I'd come by."

She doesn't know what to think. In fact, she's finding it hard to think. Her pulse is racing, and her emotions are raging, jumping from happiness to uncertainty to anger to fear in about five second intervals. So she's just staring at him.

He shifts uncomfortably. "Um, if you want I can come back later."

She shakes herself out of her mental paralysis, and composes herself. "No this is fine. What can I do for you, Jason Grace?"

"Seriously Reyna, just Jason is fine." When she doesn't respond, he continues, "Do you think I can come in?"

She considers this for a moment. Most of her wants to refuse, but the hopeful part that's dying to be near him is begging like a puppy for a treat. So she stands back and opens up the door a bit more for him to enter.

"Thanks," he says.

She nods, and then leads him into the living room. "Please make yourself comfortable." When he sits, she asks, "Would you like anything to drink or eat?" She remembers the courtesies her grandmother had taught her.

"Hot chocolate, I guess," he replies.

She nods, and walks back to the kitchen to make him a cup. When she returns with his drink, she sees he's inspecting the cup she'd made for herself. "It's cold," he concludes.

"Yes, I forgot about it."

"Forgot about the most amazing comfort drink ever created in the history of the universe?" he asks opening his eyes widely at her.

"I think, tonight is more a night for coffee." She takes the cup from his hands and heads back to the kitchen to throw the drink out. When she's done that she returns to the living room, and sits in the armchair in front of him. She studies him for a moment, and as he's about to say something, she cuts him off. "You look well."

"I am. Camp Half-Blood is a really good place. It's run more like a summer camp, but they've got these strawberry fields…" And then he's describing the place to her, and she feels a sinking dismay in the pit of her stomach. And then that dismay turns to anger. How can he love this new camp so much? What about the place where he was raised? She thinks she has a pretty good understanding of how Annabeth feels when Percy starts talking about New Rome.

"… and they play Capture the Flag instead of War Games, but it's the same principle," he finishes.

When she doesn't say anything, he leans back in the couch and looks around. "Place looks great. Where are Aurum and Argentum?"

"Resting."

"Oh."

They sit in silence for a minute. Neither of them is comfortable with the estrangement, and she wonders if he remembers how they used to spend their time together.

"Is there something you needed?"

"No. I just…"

"You just what Jason?" she asks tiredly. "Just wanted to see how I was doing? Well I'm tired. So if you don't need anything, perhaps you'll excuse me so I can get some rest."

"Reyna, I-." But whatever he's about to say, he stops himself. "I'm sorry to have bothered you. I'll see you at the Senate meeting tomorrow," he responds bitterly.

Hearing the bitterness, her heart breaks a little more, if that was even possible. As much pain as this whole situation is causing her, she doesn't want to hurt him. He helped her get through so much in the past, and she can't ever repay him for that. But still, her pride won't let her reach out to him, and maybe his bitterness at the way she's treating him, means that some part still cares that she's acting like this. Just maybe.

He gets up to leave and she follows him to the door. He turns, trying to say something. "I just, I don't-" Then he stops. "Never mind. Good night Reyna." And then he walks away without a backward glance.

She watches him go, wishing he'd say whatever it is he wanted to, wishing she knew how to reach him.

As he walks off into the night, Jason can't shake the sense of dislocation he's feeling. New Rome is supposed to be his home, but since he's been back, he doesn't feel like he belongs anymore. He was hoping that his visit to Reyna would make him feel less lonely, but Reyna was just colder than the rest of New Rome. He wishes he could just talk to her, but she seemed so distant and withdrawn, like she wanted nothing to do with him. And he doesn't understand why. He remembers they were good friends, but he wonders if he's recalling memories differently.

He isn't paying much attention to where he's going and before he knows it, his feet have taken him to the stables, and he suddenly remembers a particular memory as clear as day, he can't believe he's even forgotten it.

_Reyna had just arrived at camp, and she had been looking like a zombie. She barely spoke to anyone, answered with curt sentences, and generally kept everyone at arm's length. She also always seemed tired, so Jason began to wonder if she was sleeping well. He decided to check up and make sure she was doing okay._

_It was almost lights out when he was approaching the Third Cohort barracks_, _and saw a shadow slipping away. He was about to call out for them to stop, when they passed under a light, and for a brief moment, Reyna's face was illuminated. He was puzzled by her behaviour. Even though she was distant, she always followed the rules. She wouldn't be breaking curfew for no reason. So instead he followed her to the stables. She stopped and entered one of the stalls. _

_"__Hello Phillipe," he heard her whisper. "How are you doing today? I brought you an apple." And he heard the crunching of the apple as the unicorn chewed on it. She whispered some more to the horse, and Jason waited patiently for her to come back out. He'd talk to her as they walked back to her barracks. But after ten minutes, when the lights began turning off, and she still hadn't come out, he went into the stables, intent on getting her out. What he saw, however, surprised him._

_In Phillipe's stall, Reyna lay curled up on the unicorn's flank, covered in a blanket. He stared at her, and as he approached her, Phillipe snorted at him, as if to say, "Dude let her sleep." _

_But he ignored the unicorn and knelt next to her. Stroking her face, he said, "Reyna?" _

_"__Hmm," she murmured._

_"__Reyna, we should get back to the barracks."_

_She jumped up. "What are you doing here? You followed me?" she snarled._

_He was surprised by her sudden hostility. He reached out to touch her, but she jumped back, staring wildly at him. _

_"__What do you want Grace?"_

_He pulled his hand back and sat down. "Nothing, actually. I wanted to see how you were doing. You always look so tired, I thought maybe you weren't sleeping properly. Now I see why."_

_"__Don't talk like you understand me."_

_"__Reyna, I'm trying to. But I can't, if you don't let me."_

_"__Maybe I don't want you to."_

_"__And that's your choice. But you don't have to be alone here. We're a team, and we look out for each other. You don't need to pull away." And he got up to leave._

_"__Jason," she called. He turned back to her. "I come here to sleep, because I can't sleep in the barracks."_

_He sat back down. "Why not?"_

_"__I don't trust them. And I have nightmares."_

_"__Oh."_

_"__Don't tell anyone."_

_She looked at him with fear, and he was struck by how vulnerable she looked. Usually she was composed and aloof._

_"__That you sleep in the stables?"_

_"__And that I don't trust them."_

_He smiled. "I won't. But one day you will trust them. You'll see. This is your home now, and we are your family. We'll protect you. I'll watch out for you."_

_She looked at him, and he couldn't decide what she was feeling._

_"__I can't make the nightmares go away."_

_"__Maybe it's because you don't think you're safe."_

_"__Am I safe?"_

_He smiled at her innocent question. "Definitely. As long as I'm around, you're safe."_

_She looked at him, sizing up his declaration._

_"__Anyway, I should let you get some sleep. I'll see you in the morning. Sweet dreams." He got up to leave again._

_"__Wait! You're not going to make me go back to the barracks?"_

_"__No, I can't make you trust the people here. And if you feel safer amongst the unicorns to get sleep, then I'm not going to make you go back." _

_He had surprised her, he could see it in her eyes. After a moment's hesitation, "Will you stay with me?" she asked so softly, he thought he hadn't heard her right._

_He stared at her so long, she began to blush. "I mean if you don't want to, it's fine." _

_"__No, no. I'm just surprised. You don't really talk to me."_

_"__You're here now. And that counts for something."_

_He smiled at her, and scooted over to her. Pulling the blanket over him, he lay down and fell asleep. _

The memory comes to him in such clarity he feels as if he has been sucker punched by it. But it just makes him feel even more confused. She seemed distant, but what if she's still holding on to his promise, and she thinks that maybe he doesn't care about her anymore? So he turns around and walks back the way he came.

When the knock comes, she's surprised. It's definitely Octavian this time, because why would he come back. She opens the door, and he bear tackles her.

"Jason, what-?" But he's hugging her so hard, she can barely breathe. "Ow! Jason, please, I can't breathe!"

He lets go and holds her by her shoulders at arm's length. "You and I need to talk, and I'm not leaving until you answer my questions!"

She frowns at him in confusion. "What's going on, Jason?"

He just closes the door, walks into the living room, and flops down onto the couch, in an achingly familiar way.

"I've got questions, Ramirez!"

She rolls her eyes, and as she's crossing to sit on the armchair, he pulls her down onto the couch beside him. For a moment he's just holding her, looking into her eyes, and she can feel him pulling at her secrets, just the way he did in that stable four years ago. She wants to lean in and kiss him. Rest her head on his shoulder, and breathe in his familiar scent. She wants him to never let go of her. But she knows better, so she clears her throat, and pulls away. He lets go, and she crosses her legs, her knees pressing into the side of his legs.

"Okay, what do you need to ask? If it's about the Praetorship, we'll talk about it in the morning at the Senate…"

"Reyna, it's about you. Me. Us. This friendship thing."

"Oh." Her heart sinks. He's here to tell her that he doesn't love her, that she shouldn't love him. And really why should she?

"I walked by the stables when I left here."

She looks up at him curiously. "And?"

"And I remembered when I found out you were sleeping there."

She smiles at the memory. "I started sleeping in the barracks the next night."

"Yes. But you said, you couldn't because you didn't trust the legionnaires, and you were having nightmares."

He remembers what she told him with such precision, she wonders what else he remembers. And even against her better judgement, her heart begins to hope.

"I didn't just start trusting them overnight. But the night you stayed with me in the stables, I didn't have any nightmares, so I decided to give the barracks a shot."

"How come your nightmares stopped?"

She shrugs. "I guess, you coming and staying with me made me trust you. And maybe I felt hopeful that I could trust the other legionnaires as well. You gave me hope that night Jason Grace," she finishes a bit sadly, looking down at her hands.

He sits in silence for a moment, and then cups her chin forcing her to look at him. "How are you Reyna?"

The question is so sincere, she can't stop herself. And then she's crying, months of pain and frustration and heartbreak spilling out. And she wants him to leave, so she can cry in peace, and she can get this out of her system. For a moment he doesn't do anything, just stares at her in stunned silence – she's never let anyone see her cry. But then he's pulling her onto his lap, and she wants to pull away, but she just curls up in his arms and cries into his shoulder.

He doesn't say anything. Just strokes her hair, and lets her cry.

"I feel broken, Jason Grace." He holds her tighter. "When you disappeared, I felt like I lost a part of myself. And for months I couldn't sleep, or eat, or even think. I missed you so much it hurt. Felt like there was a hole in my heart. I used to work late so many nights that I would forget you were gone, and I would come home, expecting to find you in the kitchen making me hot chocolate, and you wouldn't be there. Then I'd walk all over calling out for you, and when I couldn't find you, I'd go over to your villa wondering what you were doing. But it would be so tidy and clean, and I'd suddenly remember you were gone, and it felt like the world was being pulled out from under my feet. I needed you Jason, and you were gone. And you're still gone." She pulls away from him angrily. "You forgot about us all!" she shouts. "You broke your promise, and now I don't have anyone!"

"Reyna," he reaches out for her, but she turns and marches into her bedroom. He follows her. After digging through a few drawers she finds what she's looking for. His favourite t-shirt.

She throws it to him bitterly. "Here, this is yours. I needed to feel you near me, so sometimes I would sleep in your clothes, in your bed. But it never helped. Nothing helped. No one could help me." She sobs the last word, and collapse to her knees, the room beginning to spin.

He rushes over to her, and holds her up. "Your girlfriend's right. Home is where the heart is. You are my home Jason Grace, and now I have none."

"I'm so sorry Reyna. I'm sorry."

She feels angry at his apology. As if that could fix anything. She knows her anger is slightly misplaced. After all Jason didn't asked to be kidnapped by his patron goddess, but still it feels like he betrayed her by falling in love with another. Oh how the gods must be laughing at her.

"The nightmares are back Jason. I'm tired because I'm having nightmares again. But now they're worse," she admits hollowly.

"Would you like me to stay with you?"

She glares at him. Realizing his arms are still around her, she jumps up. "No!" she snaps. "Just get out of here. Just leave me alone Jason Grace. Leave me alone!"

He's scared by her anger. Good. Let him remember how intimidating she could be. Without another word, he turns and leaves, taking his t-shirt with him.

When she hears the door close in place, she collapses on her bed, and tries to go to sleep. But she can't. She's too restless to go to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3: Meetings

Jason climbs on deck to meet a strange sight: there was a weasel scurrying around in panic, and Leo chasing it with a broom and hollering at the top of his lungs.

"Get off my ship! Get off!"

"Sqqquuuuuueeeeee," screams the weasel.

"What the -?!" Percy asks, climbing up behind Jason, trying to flatten his bedhead. When he sees the weasel, he shouts, "Leo no!" and runs over to protect the weasel.

That seems a bit odd to Jason, but he follows Percy anyway.

"Dude! A weasel?" Percy smirks at it.

The weasel chitters, and begins to shake. A moment later, Frank stands in the weasel's place, looking both terrified and angry. He shoots an angry glare at Leo, then turns to Percy and says, "Reyna asked me to tell you all she'd like to meet with you before we all go to the Senate meeting. Something about planning, and I quote, "a strategic presentation to mitigate any of Octavian's schemes". She just wants us to make sure we're prepared beforehand. Octavian's kind of a maniac, but a powerful maniac in the Senate chambers."

"Dude, why were you a weasel?" Percy shakes his head obviously still stuck on the question.

"Oh, I was an eagle. And then I was a person. And then I started thinking about this quest and the one to Alaska and how it would have been nice if I knew I could turn into animals when we faced the basilisks. Apparently, they're terrified of weasels. Would've been nice if I had turned into one then. And then I started wondering if I could turn into a weasel, so I decided to try it. That's when Leo came up and started chasing me with a broom. Have you ever been chased by broom? Not fun man."

Jason considers at Frank. He remembers Percy mentioning Frank's abilities the night before, but seeing is believing. He hadn't quite appreciated the ability until he saw it.

Leo is shaking his head. "I don't like rodents on my spanking hot war machine, man."

Frank frowns at Leo. "We should get going. I'm sure Reyna will want to go into detail about the meeting, and it starts at noon. That just gives us a few hours."

"We haven't even had breakfast dude!" Percy protests.

"Oh, Reyna's ordering breakfast for you all. She even got the Arae to make blue pancakes."

Percy visibly lights up the thought. "I'll go get Annabeth. Jason get Piper!"

Fifteen minutes later, they're walking through camp to the Principiate. Jason feels anxious. He was shocked by her outburst last night, and he still doesn't know what to make of it. Thinking of facing her now is making his stomach churn.

When they arrive, Reyna is fully dressed in toga, armour, medals, and cloak. _Not surprising_ Jason thinks. And for a moment he's stunned. Where did that thought come from? He squints trying to connect the assessment with particular memories, but he can't.

Reyna looks up at the group. Jason notices the tired rings around her eyes, the coffee cups on her desk, and the sag of her shoulder: all signs that she didn't sleep well last night. Good, he hadn't either after her confession. She smiles at them, polite but distant.

"Blue pancakes, huh?" Percy asks her.

She raises her eyebrows. "Comfort food."

He grins at her, and Jason feels briefly put out that this boy has built an easy relationship with Reyna. _Why though?_ Jason thinks. _You should be happy that she's not lonely_. But still he feels disappointed.

At that moment, there's a cacophony of loud barks and two metal greyhounds come racing into the room. Reyna smiles when she sees her dogs, but when they see Jason, they bound over to him. Aurum walks up with dignity, and allows Jason to pat him, then kneels by his feet. Argentum, on the other hand, jumps up to lick Jason's face, yipping with delight, and wagging his tail. Jason notices Reyna regarding them coldly. "Aurum, Argentum, heel!" she orders. The gold dog walks over to her, brushes against her legs, and then sits at her feet. Argentum, though, keeps playing with Jason. Reyna raises her eyebrows at them, and noticing her, Jason smirks at her. She rolls her eyes, and he feels for a moment that they're sharing something good again. But then she says, "Argentum!" and the dog trots over to her, abandoning Jason. Aurum yips at him disapprovingly, and then they both settle down at their mistress' feet.

"Perhaps we should start with breakfast." They all settle at the big table that's been cleared of all the sheets of paper, that Jason remembers, constantly covers its surface.

The Arae whip in with their meal, and everyone digs in hungrily, Percy gulping down his blue pancakes (_what's up with the blue food?)_. Jason watches Reyna – the way she carefully picks at her food. She eats with dignity, just like a queen. He wonders if her father had some foresight into her future that he would call her _Reyna_ – a fitting name for a queen.

When they've all eaten their fill, Reyna clears her throat. "Today, we will decide if we can sanction your quest, and if so, who will go on it, and how much aid Camp Jupiter will offer you. I already told you that I support this undertaking, and you seven who have all volunteered to complete it. Octavian, on the other hand, does not trust the Greeks. He won't like the four of you being in charge. He'll try to either completely remove you, or replace the Roman questers with those of his own choosing, those he can control. And for any of you who have attended Senate Meetings, Octavian has the tongue of a snake. He's excellent at convincing people to side with him, at bending them to his will through words. I need you to be prepared for this. I need you to understand that today, you must keep a level head. Any outbursts will just give Octavian an opportunity to demonstrate your inability to complete a severely stressful quest. Do you understand?"

They all look at her, then after a moment, they nod.

"So what do we do?" Annabeth asks.

Reyna looks at him, and he realizes that he has the answer. "We don't give Octavian the chance to speak as much as he likes. If he can't use words, no one will pay much attention to him."

Reyna nods. "Jason is correct of course. But more than that, we need to prepare counter arguments. Anything he says, we must present evidence to the contrary. He says the Greeks can't be trusted, we argue that we trust Percy enough to elect him Praetor. He was the people's choice. And he has saved our home. He says Frank is too new, too weak, we remind everyone that it was Frank who freed Thanatos, the god of Death. He says Jason has gone soft, we remind him of Jason's unwavering loyalty to his people." She fixes him with an icy stare, and Jason gets the feeling that she's not just talking about the Romans.

"What about the rest of us?" Pipers asks. "How do we convince the Romans they can trust us?"

"That will be up to Jason Grace. If he trusts you, then I suppose we'll just have to take his word for it." Piper and Leo both look worriedly at Jason. He tries to give them an encouraging smile, but he knows what game Reyna is playing. And suddenly he feels so angry. She doesn't trust his friends, even though he's already told her what they've been through together. And she talks about loyalty?

"You both have proven yourselves, I will vouch for you. Don't worry about Octavian, ok?" Jason assures them.

They look away, and Jason gets the feeling that they don't really believe him. He glares at Reyna and asks, "And you? How do we know that we can really trust that you won't turn on us in the Senate?"

Reyna's mouth settles into a hard line and her eyes are fuming. Even Percy, Hazel and Frank seemed taken aback by his question.

"Funny you should ask that, Grace," a voice calls from the entryway of the Principia.

Gwen walks into the room. Her usual happy expression is stormy. "We used to call you our Saving Grace. Do you _remember_, Jason Grace?" she asks mockingly. "Funny, seems to me that Reyna is the one who's been carrying your weight around here."

Jason feels like he's been slapped. Gwen always saw the best in people, and spoke up for him. He's never heard her say a single bad thing about anyone (well maybe except Octavian), so her tone hurts him deeply. He frowns at her.

"Gwen, enough! He is still your praetor," Reyna reprimands her.

She just glares at him. The others look down sensing the tension. Percy clears his throat. "Why don't Frank, Hazel, and I take you three down to the Senate? We can talk about how the Greeks are, um, friends!"

They all hurriedly excuse themselves, leaving Reyna and Jason alone with a glowering Gwendolyn. After they're all gone, Reyna turns to Gwen. "Gwen, I appreciate the support, but you can't just talk to him like that, at least not in front of everyone," she says gently.

"Right, so he gets to leave us all for eight months, and then saunter back again with some new family, and wave us aside as if we are nothing!" Gwen yells. Tears are pooling in her eyes, and this bothers Jason. Gwen has always been like a sister to him.

"You know none of this is his fault," Reyna says.

"So you can be angry at him but I can't?"

Reyna looks down.

Jason clears his throat. "Firstly, I'm still here. Secondly, you're right. That question was out of line."

Both girls look at him coldly. "Gwen, get back to New Rome. I'll see you at the Senate Meeting."

"But-," Gwen starts to protest.

Reyna looks at her expectantly. "Yes ma'am."

She turns to Jason when Gwen exits the room. She considers him for a moment, wondering what she should do. She wants to yell, the pain from that one comment overwhelming her. But mostly she's just tired. Tired from alternating between pain and numbness.

She sighs. "Damn it, Jason."

He gives her the courtesy of looking away.

"You know you can't talk to me like that, not in front of strangers at the very least."

"They're not strangers."

"They are to me. To this Camp. To our customs and our ways. Jason, I want to help this cause, but you can't patronize me."

"I'm not trying to. It's just, I don't know. Things are fuzzy. I'm sorry."

"Yea that's what you said last night."

"I don't know what else to say."

She stares at him silently for a moment. "You used to know exactly what to say," she mutters under her breath. But his ears are tuned for her words, and he hears her.

"Things have changed Reyna. I'm not the same person I was when I left."

She laughs sarcastically. "You left? You were taken. Against your will. Sent to a Camp we didn't even know existed. And you changed so much you're now practically family with these _foreigners_. Thing is Jason, you already had a family, here, at Camp Jupiter. And we waited for what feels like an eternity for you to come home. So you'll understand if we don't feel particularly warm and fuzzy towards you. We can feel your distance." A moment's pause. "I can feel it. You think that eight months can replace a lifetime of memories and feelings?"

"I'm not abandoning this place Reyna. But you know I've never really fit in here. I feel like I can be free at Camp Half-Blood."

She glares at him. "Free from what, Jason? From your responsibility to the people here. As far as I can see you're still responsible for others. Juno _chose_ you because that's what you are: a leader. But you're also more than that: you're a protector, a guardian. It just feels that now you're more protective of your few Greek friends, than the hundreds of Romans you've built a life here with."

He doesn't say anything for a while but just stares at the tabletop.

"I'm not your mother Jason, and I can't tell you how to live your life. All I can say is think about what you're trading in. Think if you've got all your facts straight. How much do you really remember?"

He opens his mouth to answer her, but she raises a hand cutting him off. "It's almost time for the Senate to convene. We should head down to the city."

They walk in silence for a bit, both not knowing how to bridge the distance between them. Finally, he says, "It used to be easier, didn't it?"

"We didn't have so much baggage," she replies.

"And we have that now?"

She sighs. It's her turn to not have the answers. "It's hard to forget when all you can do is remember."

"What is it you remember, Reyna? Why don't I remember these things? Juno swore she gave me back all my memories."

"And how would you know if she did?"

He frowns. "I –. I suppose I don't really know."

She nods, confirming what he said. "Tell me, when you woke up on this bus, did Piper and Leo know who you were?"

He frowns at her question, confused as to why she would ask that. "Um, well they thought I had been going to school with them. Leo thought I was his best friend. And Pipes, well she -. She thought I was her boyfriend." He glances at her to see how she's taking this. But her face is empty of emotion.

"Mmmhmm," she murmurs. "And what of their memories? Did Juno give those back to them?"

"No."

She raises her eyebrows at him. "You don't think that's a little unfair, and maybe a bit interfering?" she asks, turning to face him and forcing him to stop and face her.

He looks her in the eye. "What do you mean," he asks evenly.

"Well, I can at least say that your relationship is blessed by the gods."

"Reyna!"

"Rey," she says quietly.

"What?"

"Rey. That's what you used to call me. Just like you call her Pipes." And he's struck by the bitterness in her voice. She keeps walking, but faster, and he has to jog to catch up with her.

"Rey," he mutters. "Rey…" playing with the name as if it's totally unfamiliar to him.

Her heart sinks but she refuses to let it show on her face, adamantly staring straight ahead of her. They pass the rest of the walk in silence - her brooding over her current predicament, him scowling slightly at her hint that he may not have gotten back all his memories.

As they pass under the border, Terminus shouts, "You, boy! What sense do you have? Bringing those Greeks here, onto Roman soil. How dare you disgrace the legacy of your ancestors, and a praetor no less?"

"Hello Terminus," Jason replies brightly, "nice to see you all chipper on this fine day."

Terminus opens his mouth to speak again but a high pitched squeal cuts him off.

"JAAAYYYYYYSSSOOOONNNN!" And suddenly he is attacked by a bright pink blur. When she recovers from her shock, Reyna sees who has caused the disturbance.

"Hey Jules!" Jason addresses the six year old girl in a pink dress and blond pigtails, hugging her tightly. "I've missed you."

The girl untangles herself from his embrace and smiles sheepishly at him. "Me and Reyna missed you too," she replies innocently, smiling sweetly at him, and showing off her two missing front teeth.

Reyna blushes, but keeps her composure. "Little bird," she calls to the little girl, "Why don't you tell Jason how you lost your teeth?"

The little girl pouts. "You promised Reyna! You said you wouldn't tell him!" she whines.

She smiles at the child. "I promised I wouldn't tell him. I didn't say anything about making you tell him."

The girl starts to complain. "Reynaaa…. sssttttooooppppp!"

She just smiles, and the little girl reaches out for her. She takes her into her arms. "Terminus, we have a meeting to get to. We will hear your complaints afterwards."

"Humph. Very well Praetor," the god concedes.

Holding her tightly, she continues on to the city. Julia kisses her on the cheek. "I love yooouuu Reyna," she sings.

"I don't accept bribes birdy," she teases.

"I love you. Please don't make me tell him!" Julia squeals, and hugs her tighter!

"I love you too little bird," she whispers to her, kissing the top of her head.

"Um, I've been gone for eight months and you literally abandon me for Reyna in a minute?" Jason complains to the child.

She laughs. "She always liked me better Grace. You know that." And she smiles coyly at him.

Jason just stares at her open mouthed. He tries to say something, closes his mouth, opens it again, closes it, and shakes his head. "That is the first time you've smiled at me since I stepped off the ship."

"And you're ruining it. Shut up!" she retorts.

"I love you too Jason!" the little girl pipes up.

He smiles at her fondly and strokes her cheek over Reyna's shoulder. "Love you too birdy!"

"Alright Miss Julia, we need to find your parents. We grown-ups have meetings to attend!"

Julia plants a kiss on her cheek. "Mommy and daddy are by the fountain in the forum."

A ginger haired woman in about her thirties runs up to them slightly breathless. "Julia! How many times must I tell you not to run off like that!" she scolds.

"I'm sorry mommy. I wanted to say hi to Jason," she apologizes sweetly. Then she reaches out for her mother, who takes her into her arms.

"Hi Olivia," Jason says grinning at the red-haired woman.

"Don't you "Hi" me Jason Grace! You've been back since yesterday and you couldn't even come round to see your poor old mother and put her worries to rest. All these grey hairs are all because of you," she says pointing to her head, where not a single grey is poking out.

Jason laughs, and walks over and kisses her on the cheek. "I'm sorry, _Mom_, but I lost track of time."

"I bet," she says accusingly, staring hard at me. After a moment she says, "Hello Reyna dear," and leans over and kisses her on the cheek. "You need to sleep more child," she comments.

Reyna smiles. "Yes Olivia."

"And make sure you two come by for dinner tonight!"

Reyna opens her mouth to protest, but Olivia cuts her off. "No buts! Tonight! At 6:30 pm!"

And without another word, she turns and walks away, Julia waving goodbye over her mother's shoulder. Reyna and Jason watch her retreating silhouette for a moment.

The she breaks the silence. "Shall we get this meeting over and done with?"

He nods, and together they walk into the Senate solemnly.


	4. Chapter 4: Loyalties and Enemies

SO first of all. thank you to everyone who posted reviews! I'm really grateful for the feedback, especially since this is my first fanfic! I know many of you want me to get started on some real Jeyna fluff, and I too really want to get started on that. But there's always that one chpter that needs to be written first before we can get into the really juicy stuff! So please please forgive me for not posting Jeyna fluff immediately. I promise that the next chapter will have lots of it! I do hope you enjoy this one. After all, every story needs some outside drama :)

She briskly walks down the aisle towards the podium slightly ahead of Jason. As she walks, she hears whispers and murmuring; she knows the subject of discussion: Jason. When she reaches the front, she realizes there are only two chairs for only two Praetors. Turning around, she sees Jason making for the second and Percy standing in the front aisle. She shakes her head at Jason and says, "No, stay there," motioning to the bottom of the raised stage. He frowns at her curiously but does as he is told.

"Perseus Jackson, please take your position as Praetor," she calls.

Percy walks towards the front a bit sheepishly and throws an apologetic look at Jason.

She looks at both of them for a moment and thinks about who she would rather have by her side. Percy is loyal and has proven that he would go to any lengths to protect his home. But this isn't his home after all. And Jason. His heart has always been in the right place, and she has never trusted anyone more with her life, but now she's not really sure what to make of him. Yet, she knows between the two, she would choose Jason any day.

"The Senate is convened," she says to the crowd and they all take their seats, except for her and Octavian who opens his mouth to speak, but she raises her hand to silence him. He glares at her open-mouthed for a few seconds, but then closes it and sits down.

"We have much to discuss today, so I shall spare us all the lengthy decisions. The first issue that needs to be resolved concerns the matter of our Praetors. Custom dictates that two Praetors shall preside over New Rome, but now we have three. And unless anyone objects, I have no intention of stepping down anytime soon." She smiles at them, and most of them return it.

"Very well, the choice is between Jason Grace and Perseus Jackson. Jason Grace has resided amongst us, and grown up with us. He knows our customs, our rules, our beliefs, and our ways of life. He has earned our trust, and he has demonstrated that this trust has not been misplaced." The words came easily to her. She knows him, she really does. And she knows that every word she says is true. She trusts him beyond measure, and she would gladly put her life in his hands without question. "Time and time again, he has sacrificed much for New Rome, putting his own life in harm's way so that our community may endure, that our young ones may enjoy a peaceful tomorrow. He has demonstrated his love and loyalty to New Rome…" For a moment her voice catches, and she feels as if her lungs will burst. She pauses, and she can feel curious glances thrown her away. Even Jason turns to look at her. This is not the time to show weakness. Blinking, she continues on, "As Praetor, he became a guardian of our people, and his leadership and wisdom has never failed us. I would follow Jason Grace to the ends of this world, if he needed me to," she finishes. She holds her chin up, and even though he again turns to look at her, she refuses to meet his gaze.

"However, Perseus Jackson has come to us in an hour of need. In fact one could argue that he was _god-sent_." She pauses, and a few people smirk. Percy says, "_Goddess-sent_ you meant," and the chamber fills with laughter. She smiles at Percy and he winks at her. "Yet in the week that he has been here, Percy has demonstrated a willingness of heart. He accepted his role in a daunting quest, and without his help, Camp Jupiter may not have survived. He rescued our Eagle, the symbol of our legions and brought it home. He banished Polybotes, with the help of a God-statue, back to the depths of Tartarus, He is a champion of our people, a fact that we all recognize, for it is you who made him Praetor. Does anyone deny he is a worthy candidate?"

"I do!" Octavian pipes up. She resists rolling her eyes.

"On what grounds, Octavian," she asks evenly.

"He is a _graecus_ and an enemy of Rome!" he retorts.

"He has saved our home, Octavian, willingly, and without asking for compensation." Turning to the rest of the assembly she asks, "Does anyone else share the same concerns as Octavian?"

Octavian glares at a few people, who then reluctantly, raise their hands.

She sighs, and then says, "Very well, the matter must be decided upon."

Percy then raises his hand, and turning to her he asks, "Permission to speak Madam Praetor?"

She raises her eyebrows at him, but nods anyway.

"Look, I will do anything I can to protect Camp Jupiter and New Rome. You guys took me in when I didn't know where else to go, and this feels like home now too. I may be Greek, but I am not your enemy. If by my life, I can save this place, I would gladly do it. But I am not saying these things because I'm trying to convince you to keep me as Praetor. I never wanted to be a leader, and I told Reyna this on my first day here when she offered me the Praetorship. Jason Grace has been with you all these years, and he is the rightful Praetor. That is why I am giving Jason back his seat. Does anyone object?"

Some looked shocked, other were smiling and nodding.

"Do you, Jason Grace, accept the proposition Perseus Jackson has offered?" she asks him.

"Percy, are your sure man?" Jason asks.

"YES!" Percy shouts.

"Are there any objections to handing the Praetorship back to Jason Grace?" she asks the crowd at large.

"Yes!" Octavian bellows bouncing up. "He's been fraternising with the enemy, gave our location away to them, brought them here, and expects us to welcome them with open arms! He's become one of them, and he is no longer one of us!"

She blinks at Octavian. How could she contradict him, when she felt exactly the same way, when she'd pretty much said the same thing to Jason earlier this morning? But before she can say anything, Jason speaks.

"I know that some of you may have your doubts about me. Truthfully, even I have my doubts." She frowns at this; if he's having an identity crisis, he should not be broadcasting it. "For eight months Camp Half Blood was my home, and I cannot deny that I liked it there. In fact I loved it. I made new friends, found love, and fell in love with the serenity and beauty of the place." As he speaks, she feels as if a hot wire is being tied around her heart, squeezing all the blood out of it. But he continues, "I found peace there, but it doesn't matter. My duty is to my people, to New Rome, and I'll be damned if I can't fulfil it" he declares, a bit rebelliously. Yet, she notices he didn't say "to my home", and she can't help feeling a bit worried that his loyalties might not be in the right place.

When he finishes, she lets the members consider his words, and then she asks, "Has Jason Grace ever given you reason to doubt him when he was Praetor?"

Octavian jumps up, but before he can speak, Dakota stands up. "Jason has never failed us, and I too would follow him anywhere. You have my vote."

Others begins to murmur, and slowly one by one they take to their feet, until only about seven people remain sitting – Octavian's cronies.

"It is decided. Jason Grace shall resume his duties as Praetor." And with that she wraps up the discussion. Glancing at Octavian, she sees a sour and cruel look cross his face, and for a moment she worries that he has some plan up his sleeve. But this isn't the time to worry about it, so she returns her attention to the meeting. "Jason," she says motioning to the empty chair next to her, "you may take your seat."

After Jason sits, she steps down in front of Percy, and for a moment just considers him. "We thank you for your service Perseus Jackson." And as she leans in closer to remove the Praetor badge from his chest she adds, "I thank you for saving my home, Percy. I am glad you came here when you did, and that we settled the past, so that I may now consider you a friend." She steps back, and offers him her hand, which he raises his eyebrows at, and then pulls her into a hug.

"I will always be here for you," he whispers, but this doesn't make her smile. Instead she just feels dread at his words.

"Be careful what promises you make," she whispers back, and then pulling away she motions for him to take his seat.

"Very well, let us continue with the next item of business: the quest. Let us start with an account of their adventures."

Jason stands up and begins to relate to the Senate exactly what has happened to him over the past few months, and when he falters he allows Piper and Leo to help. When he has finished, Percy, Frank, and Hazel also recount their tale.

When they have finished, and have taken their seats, she says, "Now we must decide on what needs to be done. Octavian, does it seem to you like the Prophecy of Seven has started?"

"Yes," he says, "But-"

"Very well, what actions shall we take?. The giants are rising, and they wish to wake Gaea. If she rises, our world as we know it will end. It seems to me, and you will correct me if I am wrong Octavian, that Juno has selected Jason Grace and Perseus Jackson to lead this quest."

"We cannot be sure of that!" Octavian challenges.

"Really, Octavian? Juno plucked Jason out of camp and placed him amongst the Greeks, and likewise escorted Percy personally to us Romans. Yes, she may have wanted leaders of both camps, but then why not choose me or Annabeth? No, it seems to me that Jason and Percy are her champions, and if this is her will who are we to challenge it?" She glares at Octavian daring him to challenge her. But he feels it just as much as she does that the Senators agree with her, so he says nothing.

"No? Well then, as the leaders of this quest, Jason and Percy have the right to choose their companions. The prophecy tells of seven heroes, so who will be your companions Jason Grace and Percy Jackson?

"I want Leo and Piper," Jason states.

"I'm taking Annabeth, Frank, and Hazel with me," Percy declares.

But at this, the Senate bursts into angry protests.

"We will not allow Greeks to undertake this quest!"

"Frank is too inexperienced!"

"They cannot choose their own heroes!"

"NO GREEKS!"

"ENOUGH!" she yells with authority, and immediately the chamber falls silent. "As leaders of this quest, Jason and Percy are entitled to choose their fellow questers. If this is their choice, then so be it! Octavian please recite the lines of the Prophecy."

Grudgingly he clears his throat and recites, "_Seven half-bloods shall answer the call. To storm or fire the world must fall. An oath to keep with a final breath. And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death_. It doesn't say anything about Greeks does it Praetor," he finishes smugly, and some Senators shake their heads in agreement.

"No, but it does say foes bear arms to the Doors of Death. For so long Greeks and Romans have been enemies. Perhaps this is what the Prophecy foretells," she replies calmly. "Maybe it is time for the two camps to put their differences aside."

"Our Praetor would have us consort with Greeks?!" Octavian smugly states. "She would have us trust our ancestors' enemies."

"Yes, I would. For peace, I would forsake my own life. For peace, no price is too great to pay," she replies. "Would you not give your hand to protect your children?" she asks the gathering. "Octavian, I will not allow pride to stand in the way of our people's future. Even if we cannot have friendship, then at least we can have an alliance. Can we settle for that?"

The Senators are nodding, though some of the older Lares frown. Then Marcus Aurelius, the Lares speaks up, "This enmity is old Praetor, and goes against all our traditions."

"We have a tradition of winning Marcus, do we not?" she challenges.

He does not reply.

"Well then, all in favour of the alliance?"

Most raise their hands. Satisfied she says, "Motion passed. Now how much aid can we give them?"

Octavian stands up, this time looking fiercely determined. "They have transportation already, and as I mentioned a week ago when we debated the quest to Alaska, we need supplies here. Now we have to defend and rebuild New Rome, we cannot waste expenditures on a quest that seems already well organized."

Most of the crowd look satisfied with this statement, so she knows that it will be hard to persuade them otherwise. But Jason stands up to address the crowd.

"Octavian is right. The camp needs every denarii in Rome's treasury. There's no need to spend it sponsoring this quest. We have prepared for all seven demigods. The Greeks have sent this as a token of peace, and hope it will convince you that we are all on the same side. Do you all feel comfortable with this?"

No one speaks out, so she assumes that this is settled. "Very well, Camp Jupiter will offer counsel but no material aid to the quest."

The questers nod at her, looking grim. When Jason sits back down she leans over and whispers, "Maybe you should have started the meeting with that?"

But he grins casually, and replies, "But all the drama is what makes these meetings so… _interesting_."

She shakes her head at him, and stares at him for a moment then turns her attention back to the meeting. She checks the time; 3:30 in the afternoon. It feels as if this day has been dragging slowly by, and she doesn't know how much more of the stuffy room she can take. So she stands up and says, "Since all matters of political import are decided, how about we call it a day? Go home and be with your families. We shall reconvene next week to discuss the rebuilding efforts. Adrian, I expect some blueprints on my desk in two days' time!"

A tall, well-muscled African eighteen year old boy nods at her from the back of the Senate, and then files out with the rest of people.

For a moment, she just stares at the retreating figures, but then Annabeth interrupts her gazing. "Thank you Reyna."

She nods, and replies, "I only wish we could have done more."

Jason looks sorry. "It's okay. We're really good at taking care of ourselves." And he tries to give her an encouraging smile, but she can see the worry in his eyes.

She nods. "Well we have some time before Olivia's dinner party. Why don't you all visit the lake? It's really hot outside, and the lake's a great place to cool down!"

"That's a great idea!" Percy states. "I've never seen you out of armour, much less in a bikini, Rey!"

She stares at him for a moment, surprised at his forwardness, but then Annabeth seeing her face laughs. "Stop embarrassing her, Seaweed Brain," she says, slapping Percy's arm.

"Well maybe if she wasn't so stoic," he replies.

She shakes her head whilst rolling her eyes.

"Listen, enjoy the lake. I'm going to head up to Camp, see how things are going."

"Reyna, come with us. You could use a break," Jason pleads. And she feels strangely satisfied to see his girlfriend frown slightly at him.

"Maybe you're right. But you don't ever get a break from being a Praetor, and right now I am needed at Camp. So I'll catch up with you all later!" The she grabs some papers from the podium, and with a swish of her cloak, she walks out into the sunlit forum.


	5. Chapter 5: Strangers

**This update took a while. Sorry guys, but you can blame that on school. One thing I really hated about the HoO series is Rick's lack of attention to Jason's older friends. We don't really get to see them, so I decided to include a little taste of the gang's friendship in this one. Hope you enjoy it! Comment and let me know what ya'll think please! :)**

She's walking through Camp, watching the activity around her, and she feels restless. Like she's in the wrong place at the wrong time. She feels as if she's walking through a dream, not really belonging to the scene around her. She's itching to do something, so she makes for the Principia, intending to bury herself in her work. But when she's seated at her desk five minutes later, the words on the papers in front of her just don't seem to be making any sense.

"The Aqueduct system, whilst an ancient reminder of Rome's greatness, is also a functional engineering project."

_He's laughing joyously at something she said, and she's pleasantly surprised that someone's laughing at her jokes._

"It brings water to the population of New Rome, making sure each citizen has access to clean potable water."

_She's running after him, and she feels a joyous buoyancy rising in her chest._

"If this great structure was to fall into disrepair, it could cause untold chaos in the city."

_"__I know you Reyna." He's smiling at her likes he knows something that she doesn't. _

Frustrated, with her inability to concentrate, she slams the binder on the aqueduct project shut, and begins to pace the room.

Finally, she stops before the wall covered in shelves and shelves of books – on history, on Rome, on warfare, on politics, and many just pure fiction. She was, luckily, one of the few demigods who was not dyslexic.

_The box from Amazon was sitting between her and Jason. _

_"__Just open it, Rey," he urged._

_"__I haven't seen my sister since before I arrived at the Wolf House. She's never even sent me a letter. What does she want now?" she asked, a bit angrily._

_"__Maybe she's trying to reach out to you now," he replied encouragingly._

_"__If she didn't cut me off, she wouldn't have to reach out to me."_

_"__Reyna, she's your sister. You'll never be able to change that."_

_"__Our story is complicated."_

_"__Pfft. My mom left me with wolves when I was two. You think your story's complicated?"_

_She was taken aback. He admitted this so non-chalantly. "Jason, I'm sorry. I didn't know."_

_He shook his head. "It's nothing. Just open the box!"_

_She had looked at him for a few seconds, trying to read his story, but he had avoided her gaze, and she thought, fair enough, this was after all his business, and if he didn't want her to know then so be it._

_"__If you had an unexpected present from you mother, would you open it?" she had asked._

_"__Yes," he replied without hesitation. "Some part of me still wants to know she cares."_

_She had stubbornly stared at him for a few seconds._

_"__Listen, if you don't want to open it, don't. But trust me Reyna, you'll regret it. You can at least offer her a chance to redeem herself."_

_Shaking her head, she reached for the box. "Why do you even care?"_

_"__Because I know you miss her."_

_She frowned at him. "What?"_

_"__Every time someone asks you about your family, you always go silent. And you get this sad, faraway look in your eye. It's hard for you to talk about them."_

_"__I didn't realize you paid such close attention to my expressions."_

_He shrugged indifferently. "I'm observant like that."_

_"__Really? Could you tell me what colour shirt Dakota was wearing yesterday?"_

_"__Um… blue! No purple! Trick question, Rey! He was wearing standard Camp Jupiter colours."_

_She smiled, knowing full well that Dakota had been wearing a grey shirt yesterday, which he had atrociously stained with Kool-Aid in the afternoon._

_"__I'm wrong aren't I?"_

_She just smiled wider._

_"__Whatever! Just open the package."_

_Grinning, she pulled the box closer to her, pulled out her dagger, and slit the top of the box. Inside, neatly wrapped in tissue paper, were a stack of books._

_"__Well that's exciting," Jason remarked picking up the top one. He was holding a copy of "Young Warriors" by V.S Reid. "A book! Who's the author anyway?"_

_"__He's from the Caribbean!" she retorted, snatching the book from him._

_"__They look old," he said picking up the others in the box._

_"__I think they belonged to my father," she replied frowning._

_"__Oh." He was watching her closely. "Rey, are you okay?"_

_She pulled her gaze away from the books – five of them in total. "Yea, let's just put them on the shelf, okay?" She gathered the books, walked to the shelves, and found a space on the second shelf from the top to place them. She could feel his gaze on her back, and his unasked questions piercing through her. After she put them on the shelves, she stood back and for a minute admired their place amongst the other volumes. "I think he read those to her."_

_"__Your dad?"_

_She nodded. "Yea, Hylla said he used to read to her – to us – at bedtime. I don't really remember it."_

_"__What do you remember about him Rey?"_

_She shook her head. "I'm sorry Jason, but I don't really want to talk about it." _

_"__It's okay," he said, reaching out and touching her shoulder. "Why did she send these ones?"_

_She had snorted. "Might have been his favourite ones, or her favourite ones. I don't know."_

_"__Do you think she wants you to remember your dad?" he asked quietly._

_She frowned and looked at him. "Why would she do that? I don't think my sister is feeling rather fond of our father," she said coldly._

_"__Maybe your sister is ready to let go of the past, and she wants you to do the same. Trust me, you don't want to carry this baggage around with you forever."_

_"__Don't pretend you understand my family, Jason Grace." She walked away from him._

_"__Rey, maybe I don't understand your family, but I know how feeling resentful towards your family can be. It will hold you back." He had walked to her side and was peering into her face. "Listen, just think about it ok?"_

_She looked into his clear blue eyes, and once again, they had made her feel hopeful. He was a stranger, and yet he felt so familiar. It was surprising that he was the one who was trying to mend her family. He didn't need to help her. Then she had done something that had surprised her as much as she had surprised him. She had wrapped her arms around his torso, pulling him closer. _

_After recovering from his shock, he had wrapped his arms around her, holding her gently, and then placed a kiss on her forehead. "At the very least, if you're not ready to forgive your family, you have one here at Camp Jupiter, Rey. Don't ever forget that," he had whispered quietly._

The memory makes her feel hollow and she sinks to the ground, her back against the shelves. She leans her head back against the books, and closes her eyes. _I am not the one who forgot Jason_, she thinks to herself.

"Reyna?"

Her eyes fly open.

"Gods almighty! You have to stop doing that," she shouts at his approaching figure, but his blue eyes are sparkling with humour.

"Stop what?" he asks innocently.

"Stop showing up when I least expect you!"

"So I might assume that there is a time when you expect me?"

She just squints at him suspiciously. "What do you want Grace?"

He grins at her discomfort, and flops down beside her. "Somehow watching you squirm is seriously satisfying."

"You have amnesia, and yet you don't forget that you take pleasure in my discomfort? The injustice of it all!" But she rolls her eyes teasingly at him.

He shoves her slightly, and she playfully slaps his arm – something they used to do all the time before he disappeared.

"Aren't you supposed to be at the lake?" she asks him.

"Thought I'd try convincing you to join us," he replies non-chalantly.

"Well, you know. I am much too busy to do something as mundane as attend a beach party," she says sarcastically.

He snorts, and she wonders if he remembers the time he had teased her about being a workaholic.

But he says nothing and after a few minutes of silence he turns to look at the books. "So have you read all these yet?"

She rolls her eyes. "No! As I explained to you before, I am taking my time to savour these books. Each one needs as much attention as a newborn baby. It'll take me time to finish all of them!"

He frowns at her.

"What?"

"I don't remember you saying this."

"Oh."

He turns, so that his back is once again braced against the shelves, but continues to frown.

Seeing him in anguish, she shakes her head and says, "Listen, forget about it. It's really nothing."

"Yea ok." But the frown doesn't disappear from his face.

"You should bring Piper to dinner tonight."

"What?" he asks turning to face her, clearly still thinking about what he had forgotten. "Oh, to Olivia's."

She nods.

"I don't know Rey. Seems like Olivia just wanted the two of us."

She stares at him in open-mouthed surprise.

Seeing her look, he asks, "What?"

"Rey."

"What?" he asks again, clearly confused.

"You called me Rey!" she says, a bit hysterically.

"Huh?" He frowns. "When did I… OH!"

She's wearing a stupid smile on her face, she knows it. But she hasn't felt this light-hearted since he disappeared. And even though she knows it's probably a bad idea, she feels hope blooming in her heart.

He's watching her closely, but she's finding it hard to stop smiling. Maybe, just maybe, things can be good between them again.

"You look beautiful when you smile."

"Yea, you say that all the time."

"Oh." And he faces forward again, and she feels the balloon deflating inside her.

"You don't remember."

He shakes his head.

She falls back against the shelves, silent and angry again.

"You really think I should bring Piper."

She frowns, and pushes herself up off the floor. Walking back to her desk, she says, "If you want to."

"But you just said-"

"Look you're old enough to make your own decisions. If you want to bring her, just bring her." And she opens the binder, and resolutely begins to read the pages in front of her, though the words are swimming off the page in her angry gaze.

He knows she's dismissed him. "Fine! I'll bring Leo and Annabeth along as well!"

"Might as well invite Percy, Hazel, and Frank whilst you're at it," she calls after his retreating figure.

Now she's too angry to even try to work so she stalks off to her villa intending to change into clothes suitable for a workout and then head to the gym to do some training.

She's working on a punching bag, letting her frustration out through the boxing gloves. Left, right, duck. She repeats the simple pattern, but she pours more force into each punch, until one particularly strong strike sends the bag flying violently off the hook. She's about to move on to another bag, when a voice stops her.

"What did the punching bag ever do to you?" Dakota asks innocently.

"The sole purpose for a punching bag is to be punched Dakota. If I didn't punch it, think of how useless it would feel," she replies smirking.

"Oh how unfair to the punching bag. It should be able to choose its own destiny."

She smiles at Dakota as he comes closer and gives her a fist bump. "Are you coming to dinner tonight?"

"I thought Olivia invited you and Jason alone. Wasn't it supposed to be a private affair?" he asks confused.

"Well it may have a few extended visitors."

"You convinced him to bring his new girlfriend along, didn't you?"

She makes a face at him.

"Oh Reyna, you're just as bad as he is."

"I'm just trying to make the best of a fucked up situation."

"You and Jason need time to be together without all of us around. You know, to talk and figure things out."

"We already tried that. All we do is fight."

"Or all that happens is you yell and he walks away."

She sighs. "You intuition is freaking annoying." She's moving closer to a new punching bag, but Dakota grabs her arm.

"Oh no, you don't. You've given these punching bags enough hell for one day. We are going for a walk, and then getting you dolled up for dinner. Come on."

"Dakota please, I'd like to be alone," she protests, trying to wring her arm from him, but his grip is unusually strong.

"Not today Rey. You've pushed us all away for too long. He was our friend too."

She stops struggling when she hears the hurt in his voice. She watches him for a second, and she realizes she has been selfish. She had been thinking of how much Jason hurt her that she had completely ignored her friends' feelings who, as Dakota pointed out, were also Jason's friends and for much longer than she had been. "I'm sorry Dakota." She gently pulls away from his grip, walks over to her bag, puts the boxing gloves away, and picks up her bag. "A walk sounds good."

He nods, and together they walk out of the gym.

They're walking to the Field of Mars, the area riddled with potholes but empty of people – the campers were focused on the reconstruction effort.

"Do you remember when some Senators wanted us to abandon the search for Jason?" he asks.

She nods, remembering the shouting match clearly.

"You said you'd quit and look for him yourself if they abandoned the search," he says watching her closely.

She smiles sadly. "And you said you were coming with me even if I didn't want you to."

He nods. "We needed him back."

She says nothing, staring straight ahead.

"We never thought he was dead," he pushes on. "Not once." His voice sounds bitter.

She feels dread pooling in the pit of her stomach – she knows exactly where Dakota is going with this conversation, but she doesn't want to hear him say it aloud. She doesn't want anyone to confirm what she already knows.

"But it's like he did die, you know." He stops, and takes her shoulders, forcing her to look him squarely in the face. "You feel it as much as I do – you feel that he is a stranger. That is not the same Jason who left eight months ago."

She looks him in the eyes – eyes full of anger and wild desperation. And she knows why he's brought her out here. He needs as much reassurance as she does that his friend is back. She puts her arms around his waist and pulls him tightly to her. "Dakota, I'm so sorry."

His body is shaking as he cries silently into her shoulder, his tears wetting them. And she just holds him, letting him cry.

"He was my friend Reyna. He was my friend." Over and over again he repeats it, and she gently strokes his back trying to comfort him. After a while he pulls away from her, wipes his face on the sleeves of his t-shirt and sits cross-legged on the ground, staring sadly into the distance.

She sits beside him, and leans her head on his shoulder.

"When I first came to camp, I was god-awful at everything. I could barely hold a sword, I tripped a lot, and I had really bad acne. Everyone thought I was another lost cause so I got placed in the Fifth. But Jason, he helped me out. He sparred with me for hours every night, taught me how things worked around here, even got Olivia to help me out with my acne. He was like a big brother to me, even though he was younger, you know?"

She nods because she does know. Jason had offered her the friendship, support, and comfort when she had first arrived at camp.

"When you said you would follow him anywhere this morning, you meant it. I know you did," he says.

"I did."

"I would too, or at least I would have. He's always looked out for us."

She does not reply, and he looks at her.

"What are you going to Reyna?"

"My job."

He shakes his head. "He loves you Rey. He just doesn't remember."

"Well that makes a hell of a difference Dakota," she replies coldly. "You can't love someone you don't remember."

He wraps his arms around her shoulders and squeezes it. "Love is something you feel deeply. Someone can't just take it away."

"It can be replaced. You've felt it."

He nods. "I have."

She wraps her arms around his waist again. "What are you going to do Dakota? Are you going to just keep drinking?"

He frowns. "You've noticed, huh?"

"I have noticed. I've noticed that since Jason's disappearance, the frequency of your lip colouring has increased."

He purses his lips. "We all deal in our own ways."

"You could have come to me Dakota."

"We tried. You pushed us away. You dealt by throwing yourself into your work. You wanted to be left alone, which was the worse thing you could have decided to do, but we couldn't get through to you."

She knows that what he says is true. "No one could help me Dakota. Being around you all just made me miss him even more. He was the one who made us all friends."

"And we fell apart once he left."

"Turns out he was our glue too."

For a while they sit in silence, both lost in their own thoughts.

"Please come to dinner Dakota. And bring Gwen and Bobby. I won't be able to do this without you all."

"Ok," he says. And they just sit together, drawing comfort from each other's presence.


	6. Chapter 6: Dinner and a Movie

She breathes out slowly, puffing out her cheeks in the process, as she assesses herself in the mirror. She self-consciously smoothes the ensemble she's abandoned the purple cloak, the armour, and the medals for. She certainly feels exposed, but she can't very well show up to dinner dressed for war. Sighing, she begins to fumble with her hair, intending to at least put that in its usual braid. But just as she's fixing the first strands, Gwen walks into her room carrying a large make-up bag.

Seeing it she says, "No way. Nuh-uh Gwen. I am not wearing any of that… war-paint!"

"Pfft. I'm just going to put on a bit to hide all your tired circles."

"My tired circles show how hard I've been working," she protests.

"Reyna, please," Gwen scoffs brushing her off. "_He _is going to be there, and we need to show him what he's missing out on!"

She opens her mouth to continue protesting, but it occurs to her that Gwen may have a point. So she smiles at the girl and sits on the bed. "Fine, but I better not look like a witch after you're done."

Gwen swats her hair playfully and then goes to work, her face moulded into a look of intense concentration. "We're also going to have to do something about your hair missy."

She frowns, sure she's not going to like what Gwen has in mind.

…

Jason takes Piper's hand as she nervously brushes her fingers through her hair. They're walking through the streets of New Rome on their way to Olivia's and Piper looks like she's preparing for battle. "You'll be fine Pipes. Livy will love you!"

She smiles up at him, but her eyes betray her nervousness. "I'm practically meeting your mom Jason. I have to make a good impression."

He laughs, and pulls her closer wrapping his arms around her shoulder. "Just be yourself. There's nothing better to be," he says placing a kiss on her head.

But even though he reassures her, he can't help feeling slightly uneasy. The moment feels… _wrong_. Like he's in the wrong moment with the wrong person. _Piper is your girlfriend, dude. She's beautiful, strong, loving. She's given you the support you needed to get through these past months. You can count on her. What's wrong with you?_ he wonders to himself. And even though he tries to convince himself that being here with her is perfect, it doesn't do anything to dispel the sense of wrongness he feels.

A few minutes later they're standing on Olivia's porch, and he nervously raises his hand to knock on the door. After a few moment's wait, the door is thrown open, and Julia jumps into his arms.

"Woah! Hey there little bird," he gasps as she squeezes him. "Woah, can't breathe darling!"

She giggles and pulls back, and he kisses her lovingly on the cheek. This feels right. This little one he knows he loves.

She peers over his shoulder and happily greets the people she knows. "Hiya Hazel, Frank, and Percy!"

The say hello, and Percy adds, "You're not gonna steal my pen are you Jules?"

She giggles again, and wriggles down from Jason's arms. "Mommy's made your favourite Jasey."

"YUM!" he says with enthusiasm, and together they walk into the house.

The house is cosy – a standard, one floor, bungalow style. In the entrance way is an elegant console table decorated with pictures of the family. Jason picks one up – it shows a 17-year-old Olivia holding a toddler on her lap, both laughing at the camera, the baby's arms outstretched to the photographer.

Piper gazes at the picture. "Is that you?"

He nods.

"You're adorable," she says.

He puts the picture back down without saying anything else.

They continue through the house. To the left of the entrance hall is the living room with an oval couch set, a rocking chair, a coffee table, and a huge flat screen T.V mounted above the mantle of a simple, electronic fireplace. On the far wall, there are bookcases. Olivia's husband, Julian, is a Mars legacy, but loves to read – especially war histories. There are also some children's books on several separate shelves.

On the right, leading away from the front door, is a hallway that leads to the bedrooms and bathroom. But they head to the back of the house where the kitchen and dining room are located. Olivia is there, her voluminous, red hair tied into a ponytail. She wears an apron reading "Mommy cooks best" over her simple floral dress to keep it from being stained. She's just pulling a tray out of the oven when they enter.

Seeing them she smiles and says, "I'm glad you all could make it."

Jason walks around the island, gives her a hug and kiss and introduces his friend. When he introduces Piper, he calls her his girlfriend, but just for a moment, his voice catches on the word. Olivia smiles knowingly, but she places a kiss on Piper's cheek anyway.

"Dammit it Julian! Every freaking time."

They turn to see Bobby, Dakota, and Julian sitting around the table with cards and poker chips strewn everywhere, obviously just finishing up a round. Julia sits cross-legged on the table, just by her father, giggling.

"Dakota! Language! There are children here!" Olivia scolds.

"Sorry Liv," he apologises. Turning back to Julian he says, "But seriously though. How is it you manage to win every round even when you've got shitty cards?"

"DAK-!" Olivia begins.

"Right! SORRY!" Dakota rushes on. "Julia, you need earbuds!"

"She's not the problem, Dakota. Your filthy mouth is!" Olivia says haughtily.

"Yea, Yea."

"I'm sorry you have the worst luck in the world buddy. Either that or you just can't play poker," Julian teases pulling the chips closer.

"I'm sorry mate. I think I'll take this round." Bobby says in his British accent finally revealing his cards – a hand to win the round. He pulls all the chips on the table towards his own pile - practically non-existent before this – whilst both Dakota and Julian gape open-mouthed at him.

"How- what – HOW?" Dakota stammers.

"The less you talk the more you hear," Bobby replies sagely.

"Riiiiiggghhhtttt," Dakota says deflating against the chair's back.

Julian chuckles. "Bobby, you've got us right in the palm of your hand."

Jason surveys the scene. It feels so familiar to him – that's where he belongs. The easy teasing and the back-and-forth banter feel so right.

"Anyways, I'm almost finished here. You boys clear the table," Olivia orders turning back to the oven.

As the boys do as they're told, Olivia bustles around the kitchen.

"Would you like some help?" Piper offers.

Olivia smiles at her. "Thank you dear. But today you're a guest. Please enjoy. I'm almost done here."

So the group settles down at the now cleared table as the laughter and talk continues and draws them all in.

A knock on the door silences them for a moment.

"REYNA!" Julia exclaims and bounces off the table. She runs off to the front door, and they hear an exclamation of "Little Bird" and "Hey there Princess" and a few moments later Reyna and Gwen appear in the kitchen – Reyna carrying Julia in her arms.

At the sight of her, Jason literally feels like he can't breathe. Her long, silky hair falls around her exposed shoulders softening and framing her face. She's wearing a bit of makeup, but its light, covering the dark circles he noticed earlier with subtle hints that bring out the natural angle of her high cheekbones and full lips. The makeup is natural, yet it makes her glow. Her white dress is simple, tight at the top, but starts to flow from the waist. It accentuates her curves (she usually hides this particular feature), but also gives her a sweet, girl-next-door-look. It falls halfway down her thighs, showcasing her long, toned legs. And the white colours makes her tan skin look warm and toasty. She doesn't look beautiful, she is beautiful. He remembers the way Piper looked when her mom claimed her – a supermodel at twenty-five. Reyna looks more like a warrior princess – strong, powerful, yet breathtakingly radiant.

Dakota whilstles. "Damn Rey. You clean up nice."

"Why thank you Mr. West," she replies coyly in a Southern Belle accent.

"FOR THE UMPTEENTH TIME DAKOTA! LANGUAGE!"

Dakota cringes. "Sorry, sorry, sorry," he pleads putting up his hands in front of him.

Reyna smiles. "Well Jules we know uncle Kota will contribute to your colourful vocabulary."

Julia laughs. "Damn!"

"I didn't say you could start using those words right now!" Reyna admonishes.

Everyone else laughs, but Olivia reaches for her daughter. "If Julia is going to pick up your foul mouth Dakota, I won't allow you to spend time with her."

Dakota laughs, and walks towards the girls. Stroking Julia's cheeks he replies, "Well then, Jules, I think we'll both have to wash our mouths with soap. No more foul words k?"

The little girls nods. "I'm hungry!"

"Well then let's eat!" Julian booms. Reyna and Gwen help Olivia carry the remaining dishes to the table, and then take their seats.

Reyna sits between Gwen and Bobby, who leans over to say hello, and on whose cheek she places a kiss. Jason feels a funny lurch in his stomach.

Hungrily, they all pile food on their plates, and dig in. For a while, the conversation is at a minimum as everyone's attention is focused on the delicious meal. But as the plates start to clear, and one by one they put down their knives and forks, the conversation starts up again.

Leaning back in his chair, Julian says, "Mhmmm darling. That was delicious. If for nothing else, I at least married you for your cooking woman!"

"Julian!" Olivia whines playfully swatting her napkin at him. "Would anyone like anymore? There's lots for everyone!"

But they all groan – their bellies full with the scrumptious meal.

"Well Jason dear, how are you settling back in? And you Piper, Leo, Annabeth, how are you all liking our city?"

Piper and Leo politely reply that they are enjoying their stay, and Annabeth launches into an enthusiastic discussion about the architecture. Percy gazes fondly at his girlfriend, and takes her hand, entwining his fingers through hers. Reyna tells Annabeth about the skilled masons, artists, and architects here in the city, and offers to introduce her to some of them if they ever get the time. They both grin at each other, and Jason realizes that the two girls have developed some sort of new friendship, which he doesn't find surprising. Both are intelligent, strong, daughters of war goddesses. But both also love deeply and fiercely. He frowns. Why did he think that about Reyna? For a few moments he scowls, trying to pull at some memory that shows this analysis of her. But they all skitter away from his mental clutching, determined to evade him.

Noticing his expression, Piper takes his hand and whispers, "Are you alright?"

He jumps. Even her touch feels foreign now. He fixes a smile onto his face and nods. He looks up to see Reyna scrutinizing him. He stares back defiantly, and her eyes flick away.

"I think when all this questing is over we should have a huge party! No kids invited!" Dakota exclaims, raising his glass.

Gwen rolls her eyes. "We're supposed to be a family friendly camp Dakota. We can't have some crazy teenage rave!"

"And why not? I think the teenage demigods deserve a real party!"

Gwen just rolls her eyes.

"But I wanna come uncle Kota," Julia complains in a hurt voice.

He laughs. "By the time we can throw the party Jules, you'll be a teenager."

"Can I go then?"

"Yes!"

The table erupts in laughter.

"This is indeed the sad life of a demigod!" Bobby says regretfully.

"Hear hear!" Frank declares raising his glass. Hazel pats him on the back.

Reyna moves to get up, picking up some dishes, but Bobby places a hand on her shoulder, stopping her. "Let me."

Together he and Dakota clear the table, putting away the leftover food, and then rolling up their sleeves to do the dishes.

"Why thank you boys." Olivia says gratefully.

"See, Liv. Chivalry isn't dead!"

"Yes, our faith in men has been quite restored."

Reyna and Gwen grin at each other. "My my darling, where have you been all my life?" Reyna teases in her Southern accent.

Everyone stares at her.

"What?" she asks incredulously.

"I forgot you used to be fun _honey_," Dakota replies.

She shrugs. "Enjoy it while it lasts."

Gwen just rolls her eyes at her.

"Alright. Since the boys nicely volunteered to clean up, why don't we move into the living room? I think they also have a surprise for us."

"Uh oh," Gwen mutters darkly. "Their surprises are awful!"

"Mama, can I go change into my nightdress now?" Julia asks. "My dress is itchy!"

"Alright love. Come along," Olivia acquiesces.

"I want Reyna to do it!"

Reyna smiles at the child. "Alright Little Bird. Let's go."

The bedroom is painted in sky blue, with one wall artistically painted with clouds. Julia's room is calming. As she's helping the little one into her nightdress, Julia seems unusually quiet.

Noticing this, Reyna asks, "What's wrong little bird?"

She sighs. "I don't think Jasey still loves us."

She stops fidgeting with her nightdress for a moment and looks at her. "Julia, listen to me. No matter what happens, Jason will always love you. You're his little sister and nothing and no one will ever change that. He will always be there for you."

"You said he'd always love you too," the child counters.

She sighs. Julia continued to amaze her – she was uniquely perceptive about things. "You think he doesn't love me still?"

"He has a new girlfriend!"

"That doesn't mean he doesn't love me too. Love comes in many forms. He just loves Piper in a different way." Her heart tightened at having to say these things; she really doesn't feel as if it's true.

"You're lying Rey Rey."

She smiles and playfully pokes the child's tummy. "I can't hide anything from you can I darling?"

"Nope!" she whoops triumphantly. After a moment she asks quietly, "Do you love Jasey Rey rey."

Reyna sighs tiredly and sits down on the bed beside Julia. "It's complicated right now my love."

Julia frowns. "No it's not. It's simple. Either you love him or you don't. And I think you love him or else you wouldn't be so sad."

"It hurts to love him darling."

Julia considers her words for a moment. "You should tell Jasey you love him!"

Reyna smiles at the simplicity of this. "It's not as simple as that!"

"Yes it is! I can tell him for you if you like." Excited she jumps off the bed running for the door.

Anxious, she runs after Julia. "Jules! Not a word!" But Julia has already reached the living room. She picks her and pokes her tummy again. "I thought you could keep my secrets!"

Jason looks up curiously from the couch where he's seated. "What secrets?"

But thankfully the child only giggles. "I'm not telling! Nuh-uh!" And then she jumps down from Reyna's arms and climbs onto Jason's lap where she proceeds to curl up. He pulls her closer into his arms and wraps her up. "I love you Little Bird," he says kissing her head.

Reyna surveys the room. She's moving to sit on the floor next to Dakota, but Julia calls out to her. "Rey! Sit next to us, please!"

She looks at the space available to Jason's right. It's tiny – more of a join really, where two pieces of couch fit together. If she curls up, she'll fit, but it'll still be tight. And Piper is on his left, eyeing them suspiciously.

"Darling, there's not enough space there."

"Yes there is!" Julia says defiantly. "You can fit right here!" she declares indignantly pointing to the join.

Jason is laughing at them. "Oh come on Rey! I don't bite!"

She frowns at both of them – especially him for using that nickname. But she proceeds to sit next to them anyway, folding her legs under her. Yet, even though she tries to make herself as tiny as possible, the side of her left thigh is pressed against Jason's right, and the touch is familiar and uncomfortable at the same time.

Just to ensure that she doesn't move from her seat, Julia determinedly stretches her legs out onto Reyna's lap locking her in the seat.

Satisfied with her scheme, Julia turns to Dakota. "So what's your surprise Uncle Kota?"

"There's no brushing you off is there Birdy?"

She laughs at him.

Dakota stands up and clears his throat. "Well as many of you know, Bobby, Jason, and I have been putting together a movie long in the making. It's more of docudrama of life here at Camp Jupiter – the ups and the downs, the ins and the outs. Admittedly it's slightly bias – you do see more of the workings of our inner circle than the other people here at camp, but - "

"Oh shut up Spielberg, and just play it!" Gwen orders.

Dakota narrows his eyes at her. "Thank you for raining on my parade Gwendolyn." But he walks over to the DVD player, inserts the disc, and then turns on the TV.

The screen is dark and a song begins to play: Gwen sings a cover of "Fifteen" by Taylor Swift.

_MASTERMIND PRODUCTIONS PRESENTS: FIFTEEN_

Voiceover:

_Jason: For the longest time I didn't think I had a family. After all my mom left me alone when I was only two. But I found a new one, and you can too._

Reyna stares at Jason. His mouth has already formed a hard line. She knows those words and by his expression so does he – it's something he'd told her often in the first few months she'd arrived. A hard knot starts to form in her stomach, and she has a bad feeling about this movie.

The voiceover continues, but the blank screen changes.

_There are figures running in a field laughing carelessly, shouting to each other. No faces are shown. _

_Bobby: Is it hard to live here? Definitely! You see monsters everywhere and fight battles – things no child should have to do. But this is who we are. And we're lucky that at least we have people we can count on. So many people don't – they have to fight their demons alone. _

_The scene changes. Now they're looking at the sparring arena. Campers wear fierce expressions. Reyna watches herself attack a dummy, a hard look in her eyes._

_Reyna: We learn to be strong. But being strong for yourself isn't as strong as being strong for someone else. We stay strong because we have something worth fighting for. We fight for our home, our legacy. But mostly we fight for each other. We are strong together, and together we are unbeatable. _

She remembers that speech: it's the same one she'd given before the stormed Mount Orthrys.

_Campers dine in the forum, laid back and relaxed. Laughing amongst themselves, but there's a touch of sadness in the air._

_Gwen: It's hard to lose the people you love, hard to watch them die. But we're demigods, it's an occupational hazard. And it pushes you to fight harder. To protect those you love; those you still have to chance to save. It makes you love them even harder, if that's possible._

_Reyna wears a black toga and she stands at the altar of Pluto, the dead prepared for the funeral rites. _

_Dakota: We will always remember the dead, but we must keep living. For their memory. If we get lost in our sadness then we betray their sacrifice, and we lose those whom are still living. Friends and family: those are worth fighting for. _

_On screen, Jason stands beside Reyna preparing to carry out the rites. She leans against him and his arm wraps around her holding her for a moment until she stands straight again. _

_The screen goes blank again._

The knot in Reyna's stomach pulls a little tighter.

_Words appear on the screen: The People around us make us strong. This film is for them. We say thank you. _

_FOR YOU DAYNA._

_The opening scene brightens on screen. Jason, Dakota, and Bobby are on sentry duty, standing at the towers of the fort around Camp. _

_"__Right, think they can see all three of us," Dakota says._

_"__Mate, I think you may be wasting your film. Nothing's happening," Bobby points out._

_"__Patience Bobby, my friend. Patience. Something always happens here."_

_"__Dude, you're like a Prophet or something! Check it out!" Jason points excitedly towards the Tiber River. _

_People are running out of the camp, gathering by the Tiber, Gwen amongst them. _

_"__Oy! Gwen! What's happening?" Dakota calls out._

_Gwen looks up frowning. "You're on sentry duty. Shouldn't you know?!" Noticing the camera, she rolls her eyes. "Not if you're distracted." A moment's pause. "I think a new recruit may be coming through."_

_Just then, a girl of about twelve with tan skin and dark hair pulled into a braid calmly walks out of the tunnel, crosses the river, and comes to a stop in front of the crowd. There are bruises on her arms and a small cut across her cheek, but otherwise she looks unharmed. In fact, she looks almost bored. _

_The Praetor pushes his way through the crowd and stands in front of the girl. "We were informed that there were monsters trailing you."_

_She nods. "Yes."_

_"__And where are they?"_

_"__I took care of them," she says casually._

_"__You… took care of them?" the Praetor asks dubiously._

_She nods again. "Yes."_

_He appraises her silently for a moment, and then: "What's your name?"_

_"__Reyna," she replies coolly._

_"__Reyna…." he echoes, clearly waiting for a last name._

_"__Just Reyna."_

_"__Riiiiggghhhtt," he says perplexed. "Do you have any letters?"_

_"__Yes." She tugs her backpack forward, digs into it, and pulls out a sealed envelope in surprisingly immaculate condition. She hands it to him._

_The Praetor opens it, keeping his eyes on the perplexing girl in front of him. Reading it, his eyes widen. "These are some good recommendations."_

_She shrugs. "I suppose so." _

_"__How do you know this man?"_

_"__He was my grandfather."_

_"__Was?"_

_"__Yes, he is dead now."_

_"__Oh." Studying the letter further, the Praetor adds, "This letter was written concerning two people. Where is the other person?"_

_At this, the girls stands a little straighter, and her eyes harden. "My sister has chosen another path for herself."_

_"__Ok." The Praetor folds the letter and hands it back to her. "Well Reyna. You want to be a recruit. Think you've got what it takes?"_

_Looking him straight in the eye she replies, "I think you'll find that I'll do." _

_The Praetor tilts his head at her. "Very well. Let us talk in the Principia. Come." And he ushers her and the rest of the campers back into camp. _

_When all the commotion is over, Dakota turns the camera into camp, following the girl's and the Praetor's path to the Principia. "What did you all make of that?" Adopting a falsetto voice, he adds, "I think you'll find that I do." _

At this, Reyna swats Dakota's arm. "I did not sound like that!"

"Shh just keep watching!" he orders.

_"__Seems like a bit of snob, doesn't she?" Dakota adds. _

_Bobby says nothing. But Jason replies. "Seems like she's hiding something. Did you notice the way she stiffened when Ed asked her about the other person in the letter?"_

_The camera turns to focus on Jason. Bobby is staring at him. Noticing their attention, he says, "What? I'm just saying." _

_"__I did not notice that at all, mate," Bobby replies._

_"__Yea well, I think there's more to her than we think. Don't be so quick to judge her." _

Jason turns to look at her, but she refuses to meet his gaze not wanting to see what he's thinking.

The movie continues showing scenes of Dakota, Bobby, and Jason bonding. Gwen often appears accompanied by a girl with black hair cut in a pixie style. Her name is Dayna and she meant a great deal to Bobby. Seeing her, Reyna puts a hand on Bobby's shoulder and squeezes it. The next scene is particularly hurtful for them.

_Dayna laughs into the camera. She has perfectly straight white teeth, and clear grey eyes that seem to sparkle. _

_She and Bobby are sparring. Swords clash and sometimes blows are shielded, but at the end of it Bobby lies on the ground, with Dayna's sword pointed at his throat._

_"__Dead," she says simply._

_"__Am I?" he asks innocently? He brings his shield up, hitting her wrist, and causing her to drop her sword. Then he yanks her down on top of him, and kisses her deeply. _

_Pulling away for breath, she laughs. "If you kiss all your enemies like darling, none of them will want to fight you."_

_He shrugs. "I'm more of a one enemy kind of guy." _

_She smiles at him, leans down to kiss him one more time, and then stands up. "Whilst you boys laze around, we girls will run this camp." And she stalks off._

_"__Woah dude. That was hot!" Dakota interjects._

_"__You better edit that out, mate!" _

_"__Are you kidding? I'm blushing! That's the kind of heated passion we need in this movie!" Jason adds, flopping down beside him._

_Bobby props himself up on his elbows to look at him. "Bet you wish you had that kind of heated passion in your life mate!" he teases._

_Jason blushes. "Whatever!"_

_"__When are you going to bring her around to meet your friends?" Dakota asks innocently._

_"__She's not ready!"_

_"__Are you kidding?! I've seen that girl around camp. She always says hi in this squeaky, happy voice."_

_"__She does?" Jason asks frowning._

_"__Yea mate," Bobby adds. "Girls think that once you start introducing them to your friends, it's getting serious!" _

_"__I just thought she was still adjusting. I mean she's only been here a month. She hasn't really settled in yet?"_

_Dakota sets the camera on the ground in front of the boys and sits with them, joining Bobby in his confused stare at Jason. "Wait who are toy talking about?"_

_"__Who are YOU talking about?" Jason asks defensively. _

_"__Meghan, dude! I thought you were into her. But she's been her fore like two years now!"_

_"__Oh! Meghan. Right," Jason mutters._

_Bobby eyes him suspiciously. "The only person that has been her for only a month is Reyna. You like Reyna?"_

_"__I never said I liked her!" Jason replies, crossing his arms. _

_"__You have been spending a lot of time with her!" Dakota says. _

_"__I've just been helping her adjust to life here. I know it can be hard when you feel alone!"_

_"__Please. You don't know what it's like to feel alone here. You were a two year adorable baby when you arrived. EVERYONE wanted to be your friend!" Dakota huffs lying flat on his back and staring at the sky._

_Jason shuffles uncomfortably at his words. "I was thinking, we should head to the beach tonight. We haven't done that in a while," he suggests._

_"__Great idea!" Dakota sits back up excitedly. "I need a little par-tay!"_

_"__And that we could invite Reyna," Jason continues cautiously. _

_Dakota snorts. "You seriously think she's going to come? The girl follows rules like a brainwashed soldier. She's never going to sneak out past curfew!"_

_"__We won't know until we try!"_

_"__Fine, but if we get caught because we're knocking at the Third Cohort's windows, I'm making you do my chores for a month!"_

_Jason grins, but Bobby stares at him thoughtfully. _

_After a moment, Dakota asks, "Should we invite Meghan too?"_

_"__Shut up moron!" Jason grunts._

The knot is tightening even more. She owes him more than she thinks.

When the next scene opens, it's night. But there's a brilliant full moon, and someone's carrying a flashlight, so the scene is well-lit.

_Jason throws a pebble at a window. Nothing. He throws a few more, and finally a window opens. He crouches behind a bush with the others, but when he sees who has pushed their head through the window, he straightens grinning. _

_"__Reyna!" he calls._

_She sees him, and she scowls. "What are you doing Grace? You're out past curfew! You're gonna get into so much trouble!"_

_Dakota snorts. "I told you!"_

_Jason ignores him, and continues. "We're going to the lake. You should come with."_

_She frowns. "Now? It's midnight. And cold."_

_He grins even wider. "Don't worry! I'll keep you warm."_

_Her frown deepens. "I don't want any trouble Jason."_

_"__Aww come on Rey Rey! I'll protect you from trouble."_

_She narrows her eyes at him and shakes her head. Then she disappears once more into the barrack._

_Jason's shoulders sag. "Reyna? Reyna!" he calls. Nothing. As he's turning away, a voice pulls his attention back. _

_"__I swear Grace! If I get into trouble I am going to kiiilll you. Here, catch!" She throws a blanket at his grinning face. "And wipe that smirk off your face!"_

_His grins gets even bigger. _

_"__It's a far way down! You'll have to catch me."_

_He moves under the window and holds his arms out. "OK. Jump!"_

_Taking a breath she lets herself fall through the window, and lands safely in his arms. _

_He smiles a half smile at her. "See? I got you!" _

_She smiles at him for a moment and then stands up. "Glad to see you'll be there to take the fall for me Grace!" _

_The scene gives way to a few snapshots: Bobby's arm around his girlfriend Dayna, Gwen laughing at something Dakota said, Jason's fingers slightly intertwined with Reyna's while she smiles uncertainly at him. _

Reyna remembers this night. When she'd jumped from that window she hadn't worried for a second that he might not catch her. Instinctively, she had known that he would, and when she'd landed in his arms, that had felt right. For the first time in a long time, she'd had a moment that felt truly and perfectly right. She looks at Jason; his eyebrows are furrowed and the hard line his mouth has formed hasn't been released. The wire squeezing her heart pulls just a little tighter.

_The next scene happens right at the lake that night._

_Everyone's laughing around a bonfire enjoying the few moments of relative normalcy they could have. _

_Dakota picks at a guitar's strings absently and suddenly says, "Don't take this the wrong way Reyna, but I didn't think you'd actually come tonight. All you do is work and follow the rules to a T. It's like you literally have no personality!"_

_Jason frowns at him. "Dakota! Lay off her man."_

_But she raises a hand to stop him. "No it's okay." Turning to Dakota she says, "You're right. It does seem like I have no personality. But you won't find out a person's true self if they tell you. You wanna know someone? You have to observe them Dakota. You want to know my personality? You'll find out. But you have to pay attention!" _

_Gwen grins at her. "It's all there Kota. I've already seen it!"_

_Dakota looks stunned. "Yea? Prove it Gwendolyn!"_

_"__Please. I'm really not going to make it that easy for you. You wanna know, you find out yourself."_

_Reyna smiles smugly at him. _

_"__I told you we girls would run this show. You boys are too busy living in your own world!" Dayna adds. _

The scene closes out, replaced by a black screen with the following: "_Turns out she was something special." _

_The next scene opens. Reyna is standing in the stables grooming the unicorns. And she's singing softly to herself. Her voice is soft and lilting. Her singing seems to entrance the unicorn who barely moves, ears at attention for every note. She turns her head, and seeing the cameraman she stops, her eyes widening._

_"__Jason! How long have you been standing there?"_

_"__Long enough!" _

_"__Jheez you could have said something!"_

_"__And interrupted you? No way! I was just enjoying some music." _

_She rolls her eyes at him. "You and Dakota have literally been following me around with that camera ever since the night at the lake!"_

_"__Well Dakota is determined to capture your personality on tape!"_

_She shakes her head. "You're both idiots! Don't you have better things to do than run around with a camera all day?"_

_"__Are you kidding? This'll be our legacy. We'll put this in a time capsule, and one day in a hundred years when a new Roman watches it he or she will know that what this camp is fundamentally about it will never change."_

_"__And what is it fundamentally about?"_

_"__Home."_

_She frowns at him. "Tell me more Mr. Grace." _

_"__Well, all of us have different stories. Some come from loving families, others not so much. But here we learn to fight together, live together. We become one unit. But it's more than that. We find people we can rely on, knowing that they will always have our backs. They can be annoying yes, but it's a relief to know that we never truly stand alone. There's always someone here for us."_

_She says nothing for a while. But then, "It's been me and my sister alone for such a long time. It's nice to have other people." _

_"__I told you that you could find a home here."_

_"__I'm not sure about everyone, but I trust you Jason Grace. From that first night in the stables, I have trusted you."_

The scene fades out on her earnest face, his reply a mystery. But she remembers what he did. He had leaned in close and placed a lingering kiss on her forehead.

"And I you, Reyna Avila."

Words appear on the screen:

_Over time, we went from strangers to best friends. How do we know we were best friends? Well only best friends can truly embarrass you and you'd still want to be their friend._

The next scene plays out.

_Jason walks with Bobby along the Via Praetoria. He wears his regular t-shirt and jeans, laughing at something Bobby has said._

_"__Here he comes!" Dakota whispers excitedly. "Places everyone!"_

_As Jason and Bobby continue to walk, music starts to play loudly. 'Zero to Hero' from 'Hercules'._

_As Jason approaches them, one-by-one girls step out from behind the bushes, dressed as muses, singing their hearts out. _

_"__Bless my soul, Herc was on a roll!" Jason frowns, confused as to what's going._

_"__Person of the week on every Greek opinion poll!" He's looking around, trying to figure out what's going on._

_"__What a pro! Herc could stop a show!" The girl dances around him, framing his face._

_Jason's eyes widen as he realizes what's going on._

_"__Point him at a monster and you're talking S.R.O!" Jason's face is beet-red, and he keeps his head down determinedly walking faster now._

_But the 'muses' continue their song and dance, impeding his ability to move ahead. _

_When they sing "Who put the glad in gladiator?" Reyna, Dayna, and Gwen pop up in front of Jason holding black signs with HERCULES spelt out on it in bright, giant neon letters. Jason glares defiantly and shakes his head at the giggling girls. "I'm going to kill you!" he mouths at Reyna, who just sings "HERCULES!"_

_When the song ends, the 'muses' strike a pose draped on Jason. His blush deepens and he refuses to look at anyone. Dakota snaps a picture and then they all run away, clearing the scene like nothing ever happened. _

_Reyna, Dayna, and Gwen walk over, barely containing their glee. _

_"__I am going to kill you Reyna Avila! I know this was all your idea!" he mutters furiously._

_She just laughs. But then she walks in closer and gives him a kiss on his cheek. Surprised, he finally looks up at her, a smile forming on his lips. "Happy birthday Hercules," she says._

_"__Don't call me that!" _

_She turns away and begins to lead the group to the city. Looking over her shoulder she calls, "Why not? We all need our very own Hercules."_

_Dakota snorts. "So what does that make you? Meg?"_

_She smiles coyly at him, and Jason's blush returns._

_Seeing his face, she laughs. "Lighten up birthday boy. We've got more surprises in store!"_

_He just shakes his head. "One surprise is good enough for me! I'm going to get you back you know."_

_She grins at him. "Can't wait!"_

The scene fades out, replaced by the following words: _And that he did._

Reyna groans. "We are not watching what I think comes next!"

"Excuse me? We just watched you humiliate me singing 'Hercules"! If I had to sit through that, you have to sit through this!" Jason retorts.

She groans again, and Dakota grins at her.

_It's a bright sunny day. This time they're in the Field of Mars. But the scene is festive. There are chairs and tables set up, and party streamers and balloons decorate the scene. People laugh and talk. Reyna walks in accompanied by Gwen and Dayna. She's wearing a flowy yellow dress with capped sleeves that falls to her knees. Her hair is braided down her shoulder as per usual. Suddenly music begins to blare, and she looks panicked. "Oh gods no!" she mutters. _

_Jason, Dakota, and Bobby appear wearing white boxers, their chests bare. _

_She covers her face with her hands muttering "Oh god. Oh god. Oh god."_

_Gwen and Dayna giggle beside her. _

_Together, the boys sing "Kiss' by Prince, Jason taking lead. As they sing, they move closer, performing a choreographed routine. _

_Reyna turns to leave her face red with embarrassment, but the girls force her to turn back to the scene. _

_When the chorus begins to play, Jason sings it directly to her, grinning at her discomfort, and after "I just want your extra time and your…kiss," he places a kiss on her cheek on the beat. _

_They continue their performance, clearly really into it, and Reyna looks terrified. They finish with a flourish and all the guests explode in enthusiastic applause. _

_Jason walks over to her takes her hands. "Happy Birthday Megara."_

_She doesn't say anything, the petrified look hasn't left her eyes. _

_At her expression, all their friends burst into laughter. "Cat got your tongue?" Dakota teases._

_She shakes her head and suddenly smiles. "That was rather…. Graceful!" she teases. _

_Jason rolls his eyes at her._

_"__Megara huh? Alrightey Herc, if that's how you wanna play it, game on!" she says coyly._

_Jason throws his head back and laughs heartily. "You look lovely! Like a ray of sunshine."_

_She smiles. "Not as blinding as your tiny whites though." He grins at her and pulls her into the party._

_The scene fades away._

"Oh my god! I still suffer second hand embarrassment when I think about that!" Reyna complains.

Jason cocks his head at her. He looks torn between joyousness and sadness, and she suddenly realizes that watching this must be hard for him.

_How much does he remember?_ she thinks to herself.

The film continues. The music changes to something upbeat. And more words appear on screen:

_As our group grew tighter, we even got jobs together. We became the Babysitter's Club: Camp Jupiter Edition._

_A picture appears. Jason and Reyna are at the head: Jason pushes a stroller and Reyna carries a baby-bag. Flanked on either side of them are their friends. They're all wearing sunglasses and serious expressions, looking totally bad-ass. In the stroller is a little blond-haired two year old, a pacifier in her mouth. _

Julia jumps up excitedly. "That's me!" she squeaks.

The all laugh at her enthusiasm.

_Following are more pictures of them babysitting Julia. Playing with her, feeding her, Reyna giving her a bath, holding her hands as she learns to walk, Julia laughing at the camera. One particular picture is a close up: Julia peers over Reyna's left shoulder, mouth open wide as Jason tries to stuff a spoonful of baby food into her mouth. Reyna's head is turned to the left, smiling at the child, whilst Jason also smiles down at both of them. The moment is tender._

Reyna's stomach constricts further. She longs for this closeness, but it's been gone for a while now.

A video begins to play:

_They've built a fort out of pillows and bed sheets. Julia lies between Reyna and Jason (although you can't see him, since he holds the camera). _

_Reyna reads to Julia: a story about three Billy goats. The camera is fixed intently on her face. When she finishes the story, Julia takes the book and attempts to read it. When she fumbles, Reyna patiently helps her. When she finishes, she puts the book down. _

_"__Can you sing me a song Rey Rey?"_

_Reyna smiles at her and begins to sing a lullaby softly. By the time she's done, Julia is fast asleep. _

_Turning to the camera she asks, "What?"_

_"__That was beautiful." Jason reaches out and entwines his fingers through hers, placing them on top of the sleeping child. Reyna leans down to give her a kiss. _

_"__She's lovely," Reyna whispers. _

_This scene fades into a few more: friends dancing together, playing in a band, singing karaoke, jumping into a lake, laughing carelessly, sitting quietly on a hilltop watching the sunset. _

_Finally the last scene comes on._

_It's another bright moonlit night and Jason stands on a rooftop. _

_"__What are we doing here Reyna?"_

_"__Wait for it! You'll ruin the surprise!"_

_"__Should we even be up here?"_

_"__Since when have you cared about flouting the rules?"_

_"__I'm more worried for you, Madam Praetor."_

_"__Are you sure you're not worried your dad will strike you down for daring to walk on his temple roof?"_

_Jason scoffs. "Sky's the limit, right?"_

_The camera turns away from him and focuses on the night sky._

_"__But seriously Rey, what's going on?_

_"__Shhhh. Any minute now."_

_She puts the camera down, and sits on the edge of the roof. Jason joins her, and now they're both on camera. _

_They're sitting close together, their shoulders pressing into each other. Jason turns to look at her silently. "You never cease to amaze me, you know?"_

_She scrunches her nose up at him, then turns her attention back to the sky, even though he continues to stare at her. After a moment, she exclaims, "Look!"_

_He turns to the sky. Streaks of light shoot across the sky. A meteor shower. Jason stares open-mouthed at the scene._

_"__Happy Birthday, Jason Grace. Who needs a Hercules when they've got you," she says resting her head on his shoulder._

_He places his head on hers, and the screen goes dark._

A deafening silence follows the movie. Reyna avoids everyone's eyes. There's a pounding in her ears; her heart beats as if it is trying to escape her chest. Right now she wishes it really would, she doesn't want to feel this pain. She didn't need to be reminded of what used to be, she was trying to escape it.

"Well, that was…nice." Percy's voice breaks the silence.

She blinks, pulling herself together. "Yes, you've done a wonderful job boys. Except for my surprise birthday scene."

Bobby and Dakota grin uncertainly at her.

She looks over at Jason. His expression is stony and hard. His girlfriend looks angry, alarmed, sad, and guilty all at once.

_What a mess, _she thinks to herself. But she clears her throat. She'd have to clean this up later. Noticing the yawning child on Jason's lap, she says, "Bedtime Birdy!"

Julia is too tired to even protest.

"Can you take her to bed Jason?" Reyna asks.

He nods and stands, pulling Julia gently into his arms. He disappears down the hallway.

An awkward silence fills the air. After that movie, no one really knows what to say or do, not even the adults. Leo fidgets nervously, twirling his fingers over and over again, now and then glancing at Piper.

When Jason returns, he walks over to Piper, and takes her hand, a bit defiantly.

"I think we should get back to the Argo II now. We've got a lot of preparations to start tomorrow."

The crew nod, and begin to say their goodbyes, but Reyna cuts them off.

"Actually Jason, I think now that you've been re-instated as Praetor, you should return to sleeping in your villa. It will be good morale for the campers if they see you re-integrating back. It'll give them a sense of normalcy. And by the gods, they need it."

He doesn't meet her eyes, but nods anyway. "I'll just walk them back to the ship then."

She nods. "Percy, perhaps it would be best for you to stay in the barracks for one more night."

Percy does not look pleased but says, "Fine. Just for tonight." But then he looks up and gives her a small smile.

She nods at him, silently thanking him. "Very well. I suppose I shall see you all in the morning." She walks over to Julian and Olivia and gives them a hug and kiss goodnight. "Thank you for dinner. It was lovely as usual."

Olivia smiles at her, and pulls her in tighter. "It'll work out, just wait and see."

She gives Olivia a small smile, even though she's not sure Olivia's right at all.

She leaves with the others, bids them goodnight, and then makes her way alone to her villa, her thoughts racing.


	7. Chapter 7: Letting Go

**Here, have some feels. **

She's lying in bed but her thoughts run around in her head, chasing each other, and so she can't sleep. She gets up and walks over to the window, opening it to let some cool air through. She's about to go back to bed, but then she notices a light on in the villa next door, and realizes that there's music playing softly through the window. She frowns, looking at the clock on her bedside table. It reads 2:00 AM. Why is he still up? She shakes her head, still intending to go back to bed and try to get some sleep.

But then an impulse strikes her, and without thinking it through, she grabs a sweater from her closet and walks out of the villa. It takes her only 10 seconds to reach her destination.

She raises her hand to knock on the door, and suddenly she realizes that maybe it wasn't such a brilliant idea to not have thought this through. What would she say to him anyway?

She's about to turn around and go back, but then she shakes her head, screws up her courage, and knocks on the door.

He answers after only a few seconds wait. He's wearing pyjamas and a white t-shirt. After spending many nights with him, she's used to him looking like this.

"Reyna! Hey."

"Hey. Can't sleep either?"

He shakes his head. "I was actually just going through some old stuff. It's weird being back here."

She says nothing.

"Wanna come in?" He stands back so she can enter.

"Actually I've a better idea for us insomnias."

He frowns for a moment, but then realizing what she means, he grins. "Come in for a sec, let me just get changed."

He disappears into his bedroom, and she bounces on her feet in the entrance hall while she waits.

He returns in a minute, his pyjamas traded in for gym shorts, and a sweater over his t-shirt.

"Ready?"

She smiles. "Are you?"

He grins, and pulls the door open. They race out, trusting their feet to know where to take them. A wind whips at their faces and clothes, but they keep going.

The run is exhilarating. Reyna feels her troubles falling away as she focuses on her breathing, the burning in her lungs, and her legs. She hasn't felt this free in months. As she runs, she pulls her braid loose and lets her hair fly out behind her. The run is instilling a euphoria in her and she lets a whoop.

Jason, who keeps pace with her, looks over and grins widely, then matches her wild cry with his own. They reach the base of a hill, but don't stop. They continue their race to the top, the incline increasing the burn in her legs. But she manages to reach the top a second ahead of Jason.

"Still first Grace," she tells him, grinning.

He bends over panting. "I suppose you'll always be."

Her heart squeezes, though whether from the lack of oxygen or the fact that he remembered the witty reply he always used, she can't tell.

After she catches her breath, she sits down, her legs outstretched in front of her. From where she sits, the valley of San Francisco Bay stretches out before her – a billion lights glow crawling out to the Bay. When night comes, it's like the valley becomes a whole other world.

Jason sits beside her and she smiles at him. "I haven't done that in months."

"Me either."

She rolls her eyes. "You reply with your usual Grace."

He playfully shoves her. Smirking, he says, "Nice sweater Avila."

She frowns and glances down. Noticing what she's wearing, she blushes.

"I thought you were through with me when you handed me back my t-shirt."

"This one belongs to me."

"Oh yea?"

"Yep."

He'd actually loaned her this sweater during one of their earliest quests. It was a cold night, and a monster had slashed through hers. She'd always meant to give it back, but over time, it started to feel like hers.

"I see. Guess I'm not getting that back."

"Don't expect it."

Silence falls between them.

But after a moment, she says what she's been meaning to say, "I'm sorry about the movie. I can't imagine how uncomfortable and embarrassing it must have been for Piper to sit through that."

He stares at her not saying anything.

"What?"

"You call her Piper, not my girlfriend."

"She's a person with a name. None of this is her fault."

He shakes his head. "Fifteen year old me was right. You never cease to amaze me!"

She smiles sadly at him. "What are we going to do Jason? I don't want to hate you."

He takes her hand tightly, interlacing his fingers with her. "Then don't. Let me in."

She doesn't let go. "I-" Her voice breaks. "I can't. It hurts."

"We can get past that. We'll work through it, like we've worked through everything else."

She shakes her head. "No. It hurts to be so close to you, and still so far away. To be near you, but not be able to touch, to hold you. Maybe we can be friends again one day, but I don't know if I can do that right now. And I know I should just let you go – it's the right thing to do. But the thought of losing you – all over again – terrifies me. You don't know what it was like all those months. The worry, the restlessness, the fear. I felt so small Jason, so powerless. It's how I feel right now. It's like I'm watching a horror story play out, and I'm screaming don't go in there, but I can't hear my own advice!"

Jason stares silently ahead, sadness etched onto his face. "I know what I feel right now for Piper, but that movie… the camera doesn't lie. When I first got my memories back, I remembered. I remembered Bobby, Dakota, Gwen. You. I remembered you. And I remember feeling guilty because I liked Piper, but there was something there that I felt for you. After a few months, though, that feeling, it…"

"Faded," she finishes quietly.

He nods, and she sighs.

Gently she pulls her hand away. He clutches it for a moment, but she says, "No."

He looks at her, the sadness deepening in his eyes. "Reyna…"

She tries for a smile. "Maybe it's a sign. It's time to move on. Let go."

"But the movie…"

"Those memories happened before you met Piper. Happened before you found your… true love." She forces the last words out.

"Reyna." He's reaching for her.

She can feel him holding on, and she wants him to, but she doesn't know how much more of this she'll be able to take. Tears sting her eyes, and she blinks them back. Stroking his cheek, she says. "I love you. I should have said that to you a long time ago. I love you Jason Grace, and maybe I will never stop loving you. But you have to let go. If you don't, I won't. And we can't live like this forever. We can't keep hurting each other." She presses her forehead to his head. "I will cherish the moments I had your love. You've done more for me than I can ever repay, and when you need me I shall be here. But your heart has moved on. It's time for the rest of you to. You can't spend the rest of your life feeling guilty."

She feels his warm breath on her face – and there's that attraction again, pulling her closer. But she fights it, and pulls away.

She gets up and starts to walk away, her insides aching – hollow and empty.

Jason watches her walk away, completely at a lost. He should be happy that she's let him go. He doesn't have to worry about jealousy, he can just enjoy being with Piper. But as she walks away, he feels like he's losing something important. Like with every step she takes, a little bit more of his lungs turns to dust. And he's finding it harder to breathe. He gets up to go after her, but he can't. He can't keep holding her back. She was right of course – he hadn't realized how much he was holding onto her until she walked away.

He lies down wishing he could yell and scream, but his voice doesn't work.

He thinks about the video they watched earlier. He watched himself tease, kiss, and hold hands with this girl, and he can't remember why he did any of that. He can't remember feeling that way about her. His problem was that mentally he didn't love her, but instinctively, he did. His heart knew something his mind didn't. Suddenly, he lets out a fierce growl. Ever since, Juno returned his memories, he's felt torn and out of place. And he doesn't know what to do. He's lost and confused, and he doesn't know who to ask for help.

Actually, maybe he does.

So he gets up and walks back to Camp. A few minutes later, he opens the door of the Fifth Cohort barrack. He can see Percy in the light streaming through the door. He walks over to him, and shakes him trying to wake him. But Percy grunts sleepily.

"Percy! Hey man, think we can talk?"

Percy opens his eyes a bit. "Wha- Can't it wait till morning Grace?"

Jason thinks about that. Maybe it could, but he doesn't think he can wait. "No."

His voice must have sounded extra serious, because Percy opens his eyes fully, regarding him seriously. "Ok."

They walk out of the barracks – heading to the quiet, empty Via Preatoria.

"What's up man?" Percy asks.

"Reyna," Jason says simply.

"Oh."

"She just told me she was letting me go."

"Did she?"

He nods.

"And?"

"I don't know Percy. It doesn't feel right."

"You'd think that it would though. Your ex-girlfriend tells you she's okay with you falling in love with another girl."

Jason stops and looks at Percy, surprised at the bitterness in the son of Poseidon's voice.

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing. You just fell in love with another girl, while one waited here for you."

"Percy I'm trying to figure this thing out. Reyna and I technically weren't dating before I disappeared."

"But you did love her?"

Jason says nothing. His heart answers 'yes' but his brain scoffs at the question.

"And she loves you very much." Percy's voice is hard.

"How do you know?"

Percy laughs. "Dude, I'm no Sherlock Holmes, but I could tell. You didn't see the way her eyes turned sad the first day I arrived at Camp when we talked about you. The way she grimaced when Hazel said that you might still be alive – like she couldn't bear to hope. You didn't hear the despair in her voice when she said that I might have been sent to make up for your _loss_. She wanted me to help her save Camp Jason, but she needed _you_, and you didn't see any of that. You disappeared without any explanation, and showed up a completely new person."

Jason is stunned by Percy's fierce defense of Reyna, but he supposes he shouldn't be surprised. He'd glimpsed the friendship that had developed between the two over the past few days.

"You don't think I know that this is on me. That she's hurting because of me?"

"I don't think you fully understand it. You were at Camp Half Blood. How was Annabeth these past few months?"

"She was losing her mind."

"Do you think Reyna was any different?"

Jason says nothing, knowing deep down that everything Percy says is true.

"How come you remember everything so clearly?" Jason asks Percy. "You remember Annabeth, the way you felt about her."

"Annabeth cleared up all our doubts about our relationship right after the Titan War. We knew exactly where we stood with each other."

"It seems like I knew I loved Reyna. From the movie we watched tonight."

"Was it clear?"

Jason tries to think, pushing deep within his mind trying to pull out memories to help him make sense of this situation. "I- I think things might have changed when she became Preator. She was so busy, so distant. I had hoped things would get better when I became Praetor, but then the war happened, and after we were so busy cleaning up."

"So…no?"

Jason growls. "Why did Juno have to fuck everything up?"

Percy claps him on the shoulder. "Love like that doesn't go away Jason. It's instinct."

"It's like my mind says you're in love with Piper, but when I see Reyna, it's amazing. It feels _right_ being next to her."

"I think in this case, you need to take my mom's advice: follow your heart man. It remembers something your brain doesn't. Trust it."

Jason nods. "This is so fucked up. What about Piper?"

"She's a daughter of love. I think she'll understand what true love means."

Jason says nothing, not sure what he's going to do. He knows that what he's feeling right now is real – that emptiness since Reyna walked away. He wants – no _needs – _her back. "Thanks man. Sorry I woke you up."

"It's cool. You just owe me now." And Percy walks away, back to the barracks, leaving Jason alone with his thoughts. Sure that he's not going to sleep, he heads back to the hill where he sat with Reyna, hoping for some sort of spiritual enlightenment.


	8. Chapter 8: Preparations and Surprises

She opens her eyes suddenly, not sure why she's awoken so abruptly. But a prompt rapping on her door answers the question. She rises, but groans at the stiffness in her back – she had been lying curled up on the couch, knees pressed to her chest, trying to make herself as small as possible.

Another urgent knock forces her to get to her feet and answer it. When she opens the door, she's relieved to find a friendly face.

"Hey Gwen."

Gwen smiles warmly at her. "I haven't seen you much since I mustered out of the legion. So I figured we could use some girl time and have breakfast together," she says holding up a large, brown paper bag.

Reyna smiles. "That sounds lovely. Come in."

The blonde accompanies her to the kitchen where she proceeds to make some coffee, yawning wildly. Whilst she does this, Gwen empties the paper bag, laying out the goodies. There are croissants and bagels, with omelettes and a side of fresh fruit of berries and orange slices.

Reyna's stomach rumbles and up until this point she hasn't realized just how hungry she is. Hearing the noise, Gwen laughs and Reyna makes a face at her. When the coffee is finished the girls sit down at the kitchen's island to enjoy their small meal.

For a while, neither girl says anything, but after a few bites into her croissant, Gwen says, "So, slept well last night?"

Reyna gives her a look. "By the tone of your question I'm going to assume that you already know the answer to that question."

Gwen smiles ruefully. "Did you talk to him at all after dinner?"

She nods. "We went for a run really early this morning. We talked."

"Annnddd?" Gwen prompts.

"And nothing. We decided to let it go."

"We decided, or you decided?" Gwen asks suspiciously.

"What does it matter, Gwen?"

"It does matter Rey. It matters because you are constantly sacrificing your happiness for everyone else's. You keep making all these decisions on your own like they're only yours to make."

"Someone's got to make the tough calls. And he wouldn't have. I know him Gwen. He's too busy trying not to hurt anyone."

"You don't deserve to be hurt Reyna. You deserve to be happy too."

"I can find happiness elsewhere Gwen. I don't need a man to love me to be happy. I have a whole family here."

Gwen looks her straight in the eye, and seeing the defiance there, her voice softens. "Reyna, you are an amazing Praetor. You're selfless and nothing is more important to you than this camp and its well-being. But you don't always have to be noble. You don't always have to make the noble choices. Even as a leader, it is okay for you to want something, _someone_ for yourself. I have seen the joy he brings you. Will you lose that?"

Reyna shakes her head. "People come and go into our lives all the time Gwen. I've learnt to let go, to pick up the pieces and move on. I've done it before, and I can do it again. As for doing the noble thing, this isn't just the noble thing, it's the right thing."

"The right thing would be to fight for him."

"Fight to what end? What if I break their relationship up huh? What if I ruined something that was truly good? Then he's unhappy, she's unhappy, and I am unhappy. He wouldn't belong to me even then. In fact, he would be even further away. I will not ruin their happiness to satisfy some girlish envy. No Gwen, I will not fight for him. This is the way it is, and so be it. I will make my own happiness."

Gwen looks at her sadly. As she opens her mouth to say something, Reyna pulls her into a hug.

"Please don't pity me Gwen. My dignity is the only thing I have right now. I will be alright."

Gwen hugs her back tightly. "I know Rey. I just worry about you sometime."

Reyna pulls away and smiles at the blonde. "We're Romans Gwen. We're tough as nails. No boy is going to break us."

Gwen laughs and fist bumps her.

When they finish breakfast, Gwen volunteers to clean up so she can get dressed. A half hour later, both girls exit the villa, Gwen bidding her goodbye at the door, and she begins to make her way to the Principia. When she gets there, she's slightly surprised to see her fellow Preator fully dressed and already busying himself with paperwork. Seeing him gives her no pain or joy. It's like he's just another regular person.

When he notices her he says, "I had no idea paperwork could pile up this quickly!"

She smiles a little at the sheer look of desperation in his blue eyes. Walking over to him, she pulls the papers away from him. "Actually, there are other things that require our attention."

He squints up at her. "Like what?"

"Well since the battle happened on the Feast of Fortuna, we didn't exactly get to have our proper festivities. I figured since the Greeks are here, we could hold the festival now."

His face lights up. "Anything to get away from paperwork!"

She laughs.

"Ok, where do we start Praetor Ramirez?"

Reyna smiles. "Well, if we're going to plan a party, we'll need a party planner."

He grins at her. "Well lucky for you, I know a total wild child."

A few minutes later Dakota is standing in front of the pair of them, a wild, gleeful look on his face.

"I thought you'd never ask!" he exclaims triumphantly. "Well if we're going to do this, we better get started. We have lots of work to do. A menu to plan, entertainers to organize, decorations to set up, drinks to buy."

She frowns at the word 'drinks'. "Dakota-"

"I know. I know. They'll be non-alcoholic of course."

"This party also needs to be family friendly. It's a festival for all of New Rome."

"Damnit! Why do you and Gwen always have to steal my thunder?" he grumbles.

"One of the many pleasures of life," she replies. "Well since we have so much to do, why don't we delegate various tasks to the campers. I shall speak with the Arae about the food and drinks. Jason, perhaps you'll like to see the clean-up and decorating of the forum?"

He nods, and together he and Dakota exit the Principia to rally the campers for their tasks.

She looks at the shelf behind her desk. There are several recipe books, filled with foods for traditional Roman holidays. Pulling the one with her favourite treats, she makes her way to the kitchens to set the Arae to work.

Jason stands on the edge of the fountain, watching the preparations for the festival come together. Piper stands with a groups of campers helping to string up fairy lights over the broad avenue that will light up the night. At each end of the street, campers are setting up an elaborate arch for people to walk through.

Dakota is speaking with several shop owners along the street, trying to convince them to allow him to decorate the store fronts for the night. Being Romans, they don't take much convincing, and after a moment, he beckons to Jason.

"Ok here's the plan. See those pillars? We're going to wrap vines around them. And within those vines there'll be small light bulbs that'll make them glow, ok?"

Jason nods. "Yes Boss. But we're gonna need a ladder."

The closest shopkeeper smiles at the boys. Seeing him, Jason asks, "You wouldn't happen to have one would you Mr. McNicoll?"

The sweet shop owner smiles at him. "In the back boys."

They grin, say 'Thank you' and then proceed to work.

When they're halfway through decorating the pillars, Reyna joins them. "It looks lovely already Dakota. Well done!"

He grins at her. But the job is taking much of his effort, so he doesn't waste breath replying, but returns to his work.

She nods at Jason and continues down the street. Seeing Piper and Leo helping to put up the last of the lights, she walks over to them. "It looks wonderful," she murmurs softly.

They both jump at the sound of her voice.

Leo smiles nervously at her. "You ain't see nothing yet, sweet pea. Wait till these bad boys get lit up tonight!"

She frowns at the nickname, and at the thought of what the lights will do when lit. Henry, a camper and a son of Vulcan, approaches her, grinning madly. "Leo had some crazy engineering ideas about the lights!"

This does nothing to dispel her misgivings, but she forces a smile onto her lips. "Well I look forward to seeing what they can do." They smile at her and turn back to their work.

She keeps on walking, until she comes to the workshop. It's large, with a blazing fire in the middle and tools of all sorts and sizes hang on walls blackened with soot. Various people run around fixing tools and weapons, forging new ones, making toys, and sketching out new plans. She clears her throat, and a tall, well-muscled nineteen year old looks up at her.

"Reyna!" he calls, setting down his hammer. "What can I do for you?"

Reyna feels a nervous twitch in her stomach. With his shoulder length dark hair, well-defined tanned muscles, and rippling abs, Micah was an unnerving specimen. Something she'd noticed from the first time she'd met him, a few weeks after she'd first arrived. She straightens her back and says, "I was just wondering if those fireworks were ready for tonight."

He grins at her. "Those babies were done a week ago!"

She nods. "Very well. I expect a good show tonight Micah!" She turns to leave, but he calls after her.

"I see your boyfriend is doing well."

She freezes, and then turns, squinting at him. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me darling." And he picks up his hammer, returning to his work, leaving her to baffle over his words.

By the time she rejoins Dakota and Jason, the decorations have all been set up. She marvels at the way it has transformed the forum, from a place of wreckage to a festive sight. Everyone walking through seems in high spirits, and she doesn't regret her decision to have this festival. People needed a bit of cheering up after the past week, the past months.

Dakota dusts his hands off on his jeans. "Well that's that. All that's left is the food." He squints suspiciously at Reyna, who shoves him.

"I told you I'd take care of it."

"You'd better Ramirez. I don't want my party ruined by poor food choices. Think of how my father will feel looking down from Olympus."

"Yea, yea Dakota. Don't worry, I gotcha!" she says brushing him off. The boy rubs her head playfully, and runs off before she can protest.

Glaring at his retreating back, she tries to smooth her hair down. After a moment, she realizes she's standing alone with Jason. "Well, how are you liking your first day back?" she asks trying to break the awkward silence.

"Are you kidding? Every new Praetor should plan a party on their first day. That'll convince them they haven't made the biggest mistake of their life."

She rolls her eyes at him, trying to suppress a smile. "Well we still have some time. We can look over some paper work now."

He groans and she laughs at the look of pure horror on his face. "Psyche!"

He scrunches his nose up at her.

"Hey!" Piper greets them, wrapping her arm around Jason's waist. Leo joins them, bouncing from one foot to the other, unable to stand still.

"Hey," Jason replies, wrapping his arm around her shoulder. "Everything ok?"

"Yeah," she replies.

Even seeing them together doesn't hurt her right now. Good. Maybe her heart finally caught up with his mind.

"I should say thank you for helping out today. We really appreciate it."

Piper smiles at her. "It was our pleasure." Leo nods in agreement.

After a moment, she frowns. "Have any of you seen Percy or Annabeth?"

"Annabeth was helping us with the lights earlier, and Percy was helping with the clean-up, but we haven't seen either of them in a while."

"Huh," she says, frowning slightly. "Well, since there's nothing left to do, I think I'm going to head back up to my villa to freshen up. I'll see you all later."

Piper smiles at her. "Okay. See you Reyna."

As she turns to leave, Jason calls, "Wait!"

She turns back to him frowning.

"I'll walk with you. I wanted to talk about the aqueduct system. During the cleanup I had some ideas about it."

_Not the aqueduct system again!_ she thinks. At this point she'd just like to burn the dam project!

"Very well."

He turns back to Piper. "I'll catch up with you later ok?" He gives her a small kiss, and pulls his arm away.

"See you later man," Leo says. Then he and Piper walk away towards the ship, Piper looking slightly put out.

As they walk away from the forum, she notices that he's taking extra long steps. "I'm guessing that wasn't about the aqueduct project."

"No," he replies.

"Well?" she prompts.

"I was thinking about what you said this morning."

"What is there to think about? I thought it was pretty clear that we were both letting go."

"But that's the thing. What if I don't want to let go?"

"We already talked about that," she says, her voice rising in anger. She's already tired of having this conversation. Now she wants this to be over, so she can finally start focusing on more important things.

"_You_ talked and I mostly listened."

She throws her hands up in the air in frustration. "First Dakota, then Gwen, now you?! Are you guys serious? I'm sorry if I make all the decisions. But I can't keep living with questions. I need a definitive reality to move on. And seriously Jason? Stop acting so selfishly. You don't want to let me go and you don't want to let her go. But you can't have both! I was trying to make your decision simpler, but you don't seem to want to help me make my life any simpler." She crosses her arms and looks at him in disgust, "I'm done Jason. I'm out. Stop broaching this subject okay? There's nothing left to talk about!"

She begins to walk away from him, but he grabs her forearm, jerking her back into his arms. He presses his lips to her, so she doesn't say anything, but mostly to make her understand what he's feeling. His left hand moves to the back of her head, cupping its base, and forcing her head to tilt further back. His other hand moves to the bottom of her spine, pressing her closer to him. Her eyes are open, wide with shock, but as the euphoria of the kiss kicks in, she submits and closes her eyes. He tastes the spiciness of cinnamon on her breath – a taste that's causing his senses to explode. Their noses press roughly together, and although the kiss is hard, there is nothing painful about the experience. Rather, it's liberating. Months of frustration about losing his memory, about feeling dislocated, about not being sure about his relationships – all that uncertainty pouring from his lips to hers. He presses his lips to hers one last time, and then pulls away, both staring at each other in shock.

She says nothing, but she's shivering, staring at him wide-eyed. "I- I.." She blinks, shakes her head, and straightens. "We have a festival to attend. Perhaps we should be getting ready for that." She tilts her chin higher in the air, and walks away from him, leaving him feeling more confused and lonely than ever before.

**Well what did you all think? Did I make a dam joke? Hmmmm did I? Reyna's secret man-crush? Sorry couldn't resist. What will happen between Jason and Piper? Oooo who knows? Guess you'll just have to keep reading to find out. As ALWAYS please leave reviews. They're always appreciated.**


	9. Chapter 9: Light in Darkness

**HELLO EVERYONE! I apologize for the really late update. School has been extremely demanding these past few weeks and I've barely had time to focus on that much less this wonderful pet project of mine. So here's a new chapter, extra long, to make up for the late update. I just want to say thank you to everyone that has posted reviews, favourited, and/or followed this story. As my first fanfic, this really means a lot! So thank you guys! Here's the new chapter: hope you like it, and as always please, please, please continue to post reviews (especially concerning commas - I feel like I overuse them :/) Disclaimer: I used a really old song called 'I love you because' sung by Charlie Pride, but I think he was just doing a cover of a Jim Reeves song. If you like old country music, check it out! :)**

**Once again thank you all. Enjoy :) **

She stands under the shower, letting the cold water wash over her, numbing her mind, and cleansing the feel of his kiss off of her. Did she like it? Yes, she did. And that one confession made her feel so ashamed. Her shame turns to anger and she growls loudly. He was the one who grabbed her and kissed her. Why should she feel ashamed?

But the truth was, she was. She was ashamed of how she'd felt when he had kissed her. In that moment, she had felt loved again, whole again, she had felt right. In that moment of pure bliss, she'd felt like they had finally reconnected and all had been set right. And when he had pulled away, she'd wanted to pull him back again, wanted the euphoria to continue. Wanted to not think or feel anything but the way his lips felt pressed against hers, the way his body felt against hers. She wanted him, and she was ashamed of that.

"Pull yourself together Reyna. Be on guard, don't let it happen again. It was just a slip. He just wanted you to shut up. Let it go. You're moving on. Think about Micah, that lovely specimen of a man," she tells herself out loud.

She straightens, finishes up showering, turns off the water, and steps out of the bathroom. She walks into the adjoined bedroom, heading towards the vanity. For a moment, she just stands in front of the mirror eyeing herself. She doesn't usually care about what people think about how she looks, but she does care what he thinks, and she wonders if she's missing something important.

She shakes her head. Great! Now this whole situation has her second guessing herself. She is a Praetor, for the love of the gods. What more can she be? But her eyes linger on her reflection for a few more moments, during which a memory comes back to her.

_She was standing in front of the same mirror but at younger age. Fourteen. The room was bare except for the furniture, no sign that someone had lived here before her. Jason lounged on the bed behind her. His already long, tanned legs stretched out in front of him. _

_"__You know, this is a sweet place," he said. "I'll have to get me one just like it."_

_She glared at him in the mirror. "This was supposed to be your place. You were supposed to be Praetor before me." _

_Jason laughed. "Are you kidding? I'm so glad they gave the job to you. Can you imagine me as Praetor? I love Camp Jupiter sure, but I am not ready for that kind of responsibility."_

_"__You won't know what you're ready for until you face it."_

_"__True. But I know for a fact that you're more ready than I am." _

_She was quiet for a moment, just studying her reflection in the mirror. Seeing her look, Jason walked over to her and put his hands on her shoulders. They were alone in the room, and he had been standing so close that she could feel his warm breath on her neck. It had made her shiver._

_Squeezing her shoulders he said, "Look Rey. They made you Praetor because you have what it takes. Strong, loyal, fierce, intelligent. That's what they see in you."_

_"__And you? What do you see?" she had asked turning to him. Her heart was thumping loudly somewhere in the region of her stomach. She hadn't wanted him to see just those things._

_He'd smiled lazily at her. "You really wanna know?"_

_She squinted her eyes at him. "Given that look, maybe not so much now." But really she was thinking, 'Oh, yes please!'_

_He laughed and turned her back to face the mirror. "Underneath all that armour that you wear, there's something much kinder and softer. You love fiercely Reyna, and that's what makes you such a formidable enemy. When it comes to protecting the people you love, you would do anything. Combined with a biting wit and a high intellect, you really are unbeatable. That's why monsters who are smart tuck tail and run when you walk out onto the battle field."_

_She had blushed. His high praise had meant a lot. But she had still felt something missing. As he walked back to her bed, she had continued to gaze at herself in the mirror. Jason had become her best friend at this point, so what he said did matter. But she wished he had said something else. _

_She pulled on her braid, and smoothed her hair down, attempting to tame the fly-aways. She'd pulled her shirt down, and fidgeted nervously in front of the mirror._

_Noticing her, Jason smiled again. "Stop. You look fine."_

_She glared at him in the mirror._

_He patted the seat on the bed next to him. "Come."_

_She had walked over and plopped down beside him, folding her feet in underneath her. _

_Gently, he tugged her braid loose, letting her hair fall over her shoulders. "You don't have to try to be beautiful Reyna, you already are," he murmured softly. She could feel a warm blush creeping up her neck at his words._

_"__I don't care about being beautiful," she had whispered back defiantly. He had smiled knowingly at her. "It's just that when you grow up with Hylla, you get used to not being the one looked at. She was always the beautiful one."_

_"__She's not here. And you don't have to compare yourself with anyone. You are beautiful Reyna. Especially when you smile."_

_She had tugged nervously at a few strands of her hair. _

_Frowning, he said, "Does this have anything to do with that ape, Micah?" _

_She looked up at the hardness in his voice, surprised by it. _

_"__No! And even if it does, it's none of your business!"_

_He snorted. "Come on Rey. You can do so much better. The guy doesn't even know what he's missing out on."_

_"__Would you wanna date me? Kiss me?" she had asked skeptically. _

_It was his turn to blush. Scratching the back of his neck, he stammered, "I – uh – haven't thought about it. Come on Rey, we're friends!"_

_"__See! Even my best friend wouldn't want to kiss me!" She threw her hands up in the air._

_"__I didn't say I wouldn't want to. I just said I never thought about it."_

_"__So would you?"_

_"__I – uh -…" His blush was deepening further. _

_Suddenly, he had leaned in and kissed her. After a moment he pulled away, blushing as red as an apple. "There."_

_She was surprised – not sure whether to be angry or amused. Deciding on amused, she shook her head. "You call that a kiss?"_

_He stared straight ahead defiantly. _

_"__Jason, look at me."_

_He did. _

_"__Have you ever kissed anyone before?"_

_He nodded. "Meghan."_

_"__Well I haven't." _

_"__Oh."_

_"__Could you show me how to kiss? You know, just a friendly lesson."_

_"__Um… I don't know if that's a good idea."_

_"__Please Jason! What if Micah asks me out and then tries to kiss me?"_

_"__You can punch his guts out!"_

_"__What? Why would I do that?"_

_He didn't reply._

_"__OK, well how about some other guy that you like? Do you want me to make a fool of myself?"_

_Sighing, he turned back to her. "Okay, mind you I'm no expert." She smiled. "Close your eyes." She did. "Now I'm going to lean in and…"_

_But the rest of his words were lost as his lips connected with hers gently. It had been a sweet kiss. Soft. His lips had tasted minty. The kiss had felt like a feather caressing her lips, and she had liked it._

She shakes herself out from the memory, disgusted at her fourteen year old self for being so shallow. Boys and physical attractiveness? There were more important things to worry about.

But her gut twinges as she remembers the kiss. She'd walked around for days after, not sure how she'd felt about it, not sure how she'd felt about Jason. She hadn't let any of it show – thank the gods – but she had started to feel like there was something else there for Jason.

Sighing, she gets dressed, pulling on a simple black dress that falls halfway between her knees and her ankles and over which she fastens her Praetor's cloak. She is about to braid her hair, when she decides against it. _You are beautiful Reyna. Especially when you smile._ His words echo in her mind. She looks at herself in the mirror and smiles. But it feels forced and foreign, and she can see the ghost in the smile. Her eyes look too sad for the smile to be real. Sighing, she turns away, and walks out of the bedroom, of the villa, and into the afternoon's festivities.

Jason steps out of his villa and glances at the neighbouring house, hoping to see his fellow Praetor. But the curtains are drawn and she is nowhere to be seen. Sighing, he turns and starts walking towards the forum. He frowns as he walks along the Via Praetoria – conflicted emotions raging inside him. On one hand, he feels guilty – after all he has a girlfriend and Reyna clearly wanted him to leave her alone. But on the other hand, he feels an insane desire coursing through him. He is eager to reach the forum, not to find his girlfriend, but to find Reyna. It's like the kiss has woken something up inside him – like a restless itch – something he can't put into words. His memories of her are still lacking, but he's decided to trust his gut. Percy was right. He didn't need his memories to prove that he loves her, his heart already knew. He would fix things with her. His pace quickens, anticipation pushing his every step forward, fuelling more energy into each one. His heart is hammering loudly, adrenaline making him nervous and excited at the same time. He's almost at the forum, eyes searching wildly for her when suddenly someone slips their arms around his waist.

"Hi," she murmurs.

"Pipes! Hi!" he replies nervously, his voice an octave too high.

She squints up at him. "Is something wrong?"

Guilt racks his chest and constricts his vocal cords.

She pulls away from him. "Jason?"

"Pipes, we need to –"

"There you are Grace! It's time to start. We have to give the opening speech." Reyna glances between them, judging the uncomfortable silence. Realizing she's interrupted something she says, "I'm sorry for intruding, but Jason, people are getting impatient."

"Of course. I'm coming," he replies. Turning back to Piper, he places his hand on her shoulder. "We'll talk after, ok?"

She doesn't look up at him but nods. He looks at her for a moment longer, and with his heart heavier than just a few moments ago, turns away to follow Reyna.

In a few steps he's caught up to her, but mercifully she does not ask questions. She just presses her lips together apparently lost in thought.

They reach the stage where the band is set up just in front of the fountain. Reyna climbs up and he quickly follows her. He turns toward the crowd and smiles down at them. He looks at Reyna, who nods at him and begins to speak.

"Romans, tonight we honour the goddess Fortuna who has granted us good fortune for the coming year. Tonight we drink and eat, and celebrate her grace and mercy. And we pray she continues to shower us with her blessings and watch over our home, always keeping us in her favour in the years to come. Tonight, with every sip and every bite you take, I beg you to remember our goddess and to thank and praise her at every opportunity. Octavian, will you please do the honours?" she asks gesturing to the large brazier in front of the stage.

Octavian strides forward, head held high, holding a platter of fresh and juicy fruits and a large goblet of red wine. He steps up to brazier, spreads his hands wide and in Latin offers a prayer, "Dear goddess we offer you this fruit and wine from our table. We hope that it pleases you so that we might forever stay in your high esteem." He lowers his arms and empties the platter and goblet into the fire, which turns into a rich purple infused with the smell of ripe grapes. The purple smoke drifts up to the sky and disappears. The flames return to their orange colour and the Romans cheer. The band strikes up a lively tune and everyone disperses to enjoy the festivities.

He's about to ask her to go for a walk when a tall, dark haired boy walks up to the stage. He nods at Jason, then turns his attention to Reyna. "M'lady, may I have this dance?" he asks, raising his palm out to her.

She looks down at him and smiles. "Why it would be my honour sir." She takes his hand and steps down from the stage.

Jason watches angrily as Micah guides her to middle of the dancing crowd and pulls her closer, wrapping his arms around her. His stomach does a complicated series of flip flops as he sees that Reyna does not resist, but rather, places her hands on his shoulders and smiles broadly up at him. His stomach sinks even further watching them laughing together and weaving their way through the crowd as they dance, their steps matching perfectly, their bodies perfectly in sync. The song ends and Micah pulls her into a dip, and Jason feels his stomach do the same, except it does not come back up when Reyna rises.

He doesn't realize he's been standing on the stage staring angrily off into the crowd until someone clears their throat. "Earth to Airboy! Come in!"

He jumps and looks down to see a pair of kaleidoscopic eyes regarding him, concern pooling in their centre.

"What's a girl gotta do to get her boyfriend to dance with her around here?" she teases.

Jason forces a laugh, anxiety roiling in his stomach. He steps down from the stage and takes her hand pulling her towards the dance floor. He puts his arms around her waist, but he doesn't feel any inclination to pull her much closer.

Piper wraps her hands around his neck, entwining her fingers in his hair, and steps closer to him. "Tell me about your life here," she murmurs into his ear.

Jason feels a shiver run down his spine, but it's a nervous twitch, not one of excitement or delight. "What do you want to know about?"

"Tell me about your friends."

He smiles. "Gwen arrived when she was five. Her mother was sick and had no one else to look after her so she brought her here. Gwen was shy, but people loved her because she was adorable. She was so optimistic all the time and she had a knack for making people smile. She still does. She's always the one offering hugs when we need them most. Dakota came to camp when I was 8. He was 9; gangly and freckled. He had a thick southern bayou accent. Total backcountry kind a guy, super clumsy and nosy. Naturally we became best friends. Bobby moved to America when he was 6. His mom moved here when she was offered a teaching position at USF. But really, London wasn't safe for Bobby. His family had moved around a lot trying to avoid the monsters. Two years later, his mom dropped him off here because the attacks were getting more frequent. His mom still teaches at the university, and he sometimes goes to visit her." He smiles down at her, happiness burning in his heart from the memory of his friends, his family.

"And Reyna?" Pipers asks.

He inhales sharply and looks up. He doesn't want to answer that question, not like this.

The current song - a quick up-beat number - ends, and the band strikes up a slow tune. He frowns; the song is familiar to him. He closes his eyes, and starts to hum, but when the memory finally catches up to him, his eyes fly open. He pulls away from Piper, eyes wide. His eyes search for her, only to find that she's still dancing with _him_. He squints at her, but then he notices the tension in her hands as they grip Micah's shoulder, the stiffness with which she moves, and the hardness in her eyes. He knows she remembers, and the memory hurts her.

"Jason? Are you okay?" Piper tries to stroke his cheek, but he pulls away from her.

Gruffly, he says, "I need something to drink. Coming?" Without looking back, he begins to walk away.

The song's lyrics wash over him, but he doesn't hear the lead singer's voice – he hears Reyna's.

_He was lying on a blanket on the marble floor of the police station lobby. His body ached from physical and mental exhaustion. He needed sleep and he needed this war to be over. Medics rushed around him attending to the injured and the dying, trying to ease their passing. There was so much sorrow around him, and lying here, he felt useless and hopeless. _

_A thick bandage lay across the gash of his abdomen, where the Laistrygonian giant had plunged his spear. Blood had gushed out, thick and dark-red, draining whatever strength he'd had left inside of him. He remembered someone screaming his name, but he didn't know who. His world was shrinking to a single point of darkness, and he didn't remember falling, didn't remember being carried away from the battle. He just remembered waking up, his body and mind in pain, feeling the cold tiles press into his back, and a sense of hopelessness that made him want to go back to the darkness. His eyes were closing, succumbing to oblivion again, when something – someone – made his skin begin to tingle. _

_Someone had taken his hand, and a soft thumb was caressing the back of it – back and forth, back and forth - in a soothing motion. He struggled to turn his head, but the voice stopped him. _

_"__It's okay. You're okay. Just rest," she murmured._

_Her voice sounded raw and broken. "Reyna." He turned to look at her anyway. Every line of her face was etched with sorrow. There was a deep gash across her cheek, and a bruise right above her left eyebrow. Her face was covered in soot, except for two straight lines running down either cheek from her eyes. She'd been crying, he realized, and this hurt him. More than his own pain and his own hopelessness. He never wanted her to cry, and he was the reason she'd been crying. He gripped her hand even tighter, pulling it toward him, hoping she'd understand. _

_She did. She laid down next to him, her back on the floor. She placed her head on his right shoulder, and her right hand, wrapped in his, was placed upon his heart. _

_"__It was you, wasn't it? The one screaming when I got speared?" he asked._

_She stiffened. "What were you thinking? They could have – would have killed you!"_

_"__Our soldiers were fenced in. They would have killed them. I had to do something, I couldn't just let them die. I couldn't let you die."_

_"__We're in a war Jason. We lose soldiers. We lose some battles, we win some. You were far enough away. You could've gotten away. Why did you come?"_

_"__Reyna, I am the son of Zeus. With great power comes great responsibility. I needed to use my powers to help, not just stand by and watch." _

_She squeezes his hand. "I know."_

_He turns and kisses her forehead. "If I'm going to die, I'm going to do it whilst taking as many of those sons of bitches with me, ok? It's nothing less than you would do."_

_"__Don't ask me to watch you die Jason. I can't watch you die!" _

_"__Reyna, I wouldn't ask you to back away from a fight, but do you think I want to watch you die? I couldn't do that anymore than you could. And I'm not going to stand by and watch someone take you out. I love you Reyna and whilst I would be able to live and move on without you, I don't want to. I want to hold your hand in college, and I want to watch you walk down the aisle in a white dress, walking towards me. I want you to be the mother of my children, and I want to sit with you on the porch of our retirement home, whilst we tell our great-grandchildren about our many near-death adventures." _

_She sobbed, and turned her body into him, her face burrowed in the crook of his neck. "I can't lose you Jason. Please don't leave me." _

_He turned his head towards her, so that their foreheads pressed into each other, their noses rubbing. "Please Ramirez. You think you're going to get rid of me that easily?"_

_She half-laughed, her tears causing her to choke slightly. "Good. I need you to live a long life so that you can make up for this heart attack."_

_He smiled, and kissed her nose. "Now, I think my pain meds are wearing off. Sing me a song woman. That Charlie Pride one you're always playing." _

_He could feel her lips turn into a smile, and he nuzzled her once more. Clearing her throat, she began to sing:_

_"__I love you because you understand it,_

_Every single thing I try to do,_

_You're always there to lend a helping hand,_

_I love you, most of all, because you're you._

_No matter what the world may say about me,_

_I know your love will always see me through,_

_I love you for the way you never doubt me,_

_But most of all I love you 'cause you're you._

_I love you because my heart is lighter,_

_Every time I'm walking by your side,_

_I love you because the future's brighter,_

_The door to happiness you've opened wide."_

_As she sang the last verse, his eyes fluttered close, his senses sinking into oblivion. _

_"__No matter what the world may say about me,_

_I know your love will always see me through,_

_I love you for a hundred thousand reasons,_

_But most of all, I love you, cause you're you." _

_As he stood on the precipice of darkness, he heard her voice echo, "I love you," but he wasn't sure if she'd actually said it, or if he had dreamt it. _

The band finishes the song, and the embracing couples step away from each other, applauding enthusiastically. Jason follows her movements with his eyes from the refreshments table where he's standing, anger and sadness boiling on the inside.

Piper, standing stiffly beside him, asks meekly, "Do you want to check out the other activities?"

He nods stiffly, and they walk side-by-side, stopping to admire the various festival-themed merchandise, and the different performers, from the stilt-walkers to the magicians. People laugh around them: couples holding hands and teasing each other. But they walk silently, him too sullen to make conversation, her too afraid to.

A loud crowd up ahead catches their attention, and like moths to a flame, they drift towards it. People are laughing loudly, and the sound of a loud clang, followed by a huge splash cuts through the air. When they finally reach the crowd, they see what all the commotion is about.

Dakota stands upon a raised stage, next to two very large dart boards behind two chairs. Under the chairs, is a large, round pool.

Jason grins as he understands. This was one of his favourite games at the festival. Of course he was always the one attempting the dunk the unlucky duo.

"Come one, come all! Think you've got a strong arm? Think you've got impeccable aim? Well step up and prove yourself! Challenge two of your friends to 'Topple the Couple' and try to knock them off their seats and into the pool! A special prize awaits the man skilled enough to Topple the Couple!" Dakota bellows. He squints into the crowd, and suddenly a large grin spreads across his face. "Well, well, well. Can we have two volunteers for a special edition of Topple the Couple?" He scans the crowd and says, "Well how about you young man?" he asks pointing to a burly dark-skinned boy, "Would you like to try?"

The boy shrugs and steps up.

"And what about your friend? Think you've got what it takes?" Dakota asks.

The boy's friend – a tall girl, with well-defined arms – steps out of the crowd to stand beside him. Together, they start to make their way to the stage, but Dakota waves them back.

"No, no, my friends. You shall be the dunkers, not the dunkees." The pair grin at each other, pick up two heavy floppy, heavy, water balloons, and step in front of the chairs.

"Now, here's what makes this game extra special! I see a couple of Praetors in the crowd! Step right up Preators, for 'Topple the Couple: Praetor edition'."

The crowd roars their approval, and Jason shakes his head grinning broadly. He walks over to the stage, the crowd parting easily for him, people patting him on the back, girls cooing at him. He reaches the stage, the same time as Reyna who raises an eyebrow at him. He wiggles his right back at her, and she rolls his eyes at him. Together, they both climb the stairs onto the stage.

When they're both standing next to Dakota, he begins to address the crowd again. "Ok dunkers, here's how it works. You shall aim those water balloons at this big red spot here. If you hit it hard enough, the balloons will hit the switch behind the red button, releasing the spring on the chairs, causing the seat to fall out, and our lovely couple to be dunked into the pool. You get three chances, clear?" The dunkers nod.

Dakota turns back to the Praetors. "Alright, all you have to do is sit tight and hope they miss! Contestants, take your seats!"

They're about to walk forward, when someone calls from the crowd, "Take your shirt off Grace!"

Jason grins and makes a great show of taking his shirt off, to the great excitement of the girls, who show their enthusiasm through cat-calls and loud whistles. He turns to Reyna who raises her eyebrows at him again, and he winks at her. She huffs, and rolls her eyes, and then walks past him to take her seat. Jason follows her.

"Alright, dunkers, balloons at the ready! This is your chance to exact some revenge on your Praetors if they have ever done you wrong!" The crowd laughs, and Reyna asks, "So where's Octavian?" causing the crowd to guffaw even louder.

The dunkers raise their balloons but Reyna shouts, "Wait! "If either of you aim for my head, I swear to god I will hunt you down and make you clean the baths, the stables, and the barracks for a whole year!"

The crowd laughs, and Dakota yells, "She will!"

A drum roll starts and the dunkers launch their first volley. The boy's balloon hits Jason squarely in the stomach, and the girl's sails right over Reyna's head. The second set misses as well – this time the balloon explodes right above Jason's head and cold water streams down his head and onto his face. The girl's balloon hits Reyna's right shoulder and she squirms against the whiplash and the cold water. The crowd lets out a loud "OOOOOOO" at how close the boy's mark came.

The dunkers raise their last balloons, give each other a long look, and together they take the shot. Both balloons find their mark, and the seats fall out from under the couple, throwing them both into the pool. Jason hears the roar of the crowd for a second, until the water engulfs him and all he can hear is the pounding of his own heart.

But suddenly it begins to pound even louder. He's looking at Reyna and she looks glorious. Her think hair floats around her and her dress rises up exposing her long legs. She looks ethereally beautiful. She watches him for a moment and then begins to push herself upward to the surface and he follows her.

As they climb out of the pool soaking wet, people cheer them on, and pat them on the back. The boy and girl who had dunked them stride over, looking pleased. Reyna grins at them. "Nice shot guys! But is there something you needed to complain about?" The laugh and pat her on the back, then walk away, the girl playfully shoving the boy.

Reyna turns to him, and a shiver of nervousness runs down his back. Her dress clings to every curve of her body highlighting every dip and every turn of it. His eyes trail over her, and she shivers, bites her lip and turns away.

She starts to walk away, when Gwen rushes over. "There's a change room over there," she says pointing to a warehouse right behind the pool. "I brought you a change of clothes," she laughs, holding a bag out to Reyna. Reyna glares at her, but takes the bag anyway. "You guys planned this all along didn't you?"

Gwen just laughs.

"What about me Gwendolyn? Am I supposed to shiver in my wet clothes all night?" Jason asks.

Gwen laughs. "Dakota put something in there for you too. Relax."

Jason grins at her, and follows Reyna into the warehouse. The place is dusty, with boxes piled high in corners and on tables. There are conveyor belts running the length of the place and an office in the far corner. They make their way to it.

Jason opens the door and stands back so she can enter. She smiles up at him and walks in.

A large desk piled with papers, a laptop, and various items of stationary sits in the back corner. The rest of the office is crammed full with more crates, order forms, and boxes of tools. There are no divisions.

She turns to him. "I can wait outside whilst you get changed."

He's about to respond, but he has a sudden idea, and pulls off his jeans, exposing his black boxers. He watches her eyes roam over his body taking in his toned legs and his defined abs. Her eyes linger on a spot just above his right hip, and suddenly she surprises him by stepping closer. Her forehead rests just by his chin, and she smells of chlorine and… something else. Her scent is intoxicating and it's making him giddy to stand this close to her.

But then she lifts her hands to his face, and begins to trace the angles of his face; his forehead, his cheekbones, his nose, and then his lips. She traces their outline, slowly and carefully, her eyes deep in concentration, and he gets the feeling that she's trying to memorize every inch of his face. Her hands slide down his neck, leaving an electrical shock in their wake. They continue down his chest, down his stomach, towards his hips, and he shivers and inhales deeply. Her fingers come to a rest on his hips. Her fingertips brush circles on his right hip, and the simple movement is driving him crazy. He wants to close the little space in between them and press her against him, and he's about to do it, when she says, "It's gone."

He frowns. "What?"

She looks up at him, defiance and sadness in her eyes. Stepping back, she pulls off her own dress exposing her lacy, nude underwear that does nothing to help dispel the desire coursing through his body. But then she turns so she can show him her left hip. Just above the waist of her panties is a small Aztec sun. Written across it, in tiny script letters, is "In Darkness". "You used to have one too. It read 'Light' instead. It was your idea to get matching tattoos. Do you remember?"

She sounds vulnerable, and she probably is at this very moment, exposing herself like this to him. He steps closer towards her, her gaze never faltering. He keeps it, his thumb finding the spot where the tattoo is etched on her skin, and he begins to trace the outline of it, just as she'd done a few moments ago. Her chest heaves, and he knows she's trying to control her breathing. He kneels down, his lips finding the tattoo, and he kisses it. Her breaths are ragged now, and he begins to trail kisses up her side, up her neck until he finds her lips. She's shaking in his arms, but she presses closer towards him, deepening the kiss, her tongue darting into his mouth, her cinnamon breath filling his senses, the softness of her lips enticing.

Neither of them makes any sound except for their heavy breathing, both breathing and sharing the same air. His hands run up her back and cup her neck. He feels something cold press against his palm, and he pulls back momentarily, noticing something that he'd missed in his cross-examination of her body.

The necklace gleams against her tanned skin. He trails his fingers along its edges, his fingertips grazing her skin. She closes her eyes and tilts her head back, her skin growing warmer.

He remembers the necklace, vividly. "You kept it all this time?"

She opens her eyes to look at him. "I've never taken it off. You said you'd come back for it."

He meets her gaze, and what he sees warms him. There is only love in her eyes, no sadness, no pain, no anger, no hardness. Just love. And he knows that it's all for him, only for him. And he loves her all the more for it.

He kisses the place where the necklace hangs lowest and raises his lips once more to hers. She wraps her arms around his neck, and he pulls her legs up around his waist. He carries her over to the desk and places her gently on it, neither of them breaking the kiss. They fumble with each other's undergarments for a moment, and then surrender completely to each other. In that moment, there is nothing else. There are no giants, no Titans, no amnesia, no other girls or boys. There is just the two of them, wrapped in each other's arms, their breaths filling the entire space of the other's world.

And this is bliss. This is peace, Jason thinks to himself.


	10. Chapter 10: Aftermath

**Ok! Here it is: the final chapter. The whole necklace thing from the previous chapter also gets explained. Enjoy!**

Afterwards he would simply like to be with her - just her - holding her in his arms and listening to her breathe. But the festival is not over, and he needs to face his reality. He needs to tell Piper the truth – he owes her that much.

They both dress quietly and quickly: her in a plum coloured halter dress, him in a pair of jeans and white t-shirt. She pulls her hair to the side clearly intending to braid it, but he stops her. "Don't. It looks beautiful this way."

She makes a face at him, but she lets her hair be.

"We should get back to the festival," she says quietly.

"Really? I'd rather stay here with you," he whispers in her ear. He pulls her into his arms, so that her forehead rests against his right shoulder. He feels her smile.

"But we can't. You have someone waiting for you." She kisses his neck and pulls away from him. "If you want me Jason, I will gladly have you. But I won't be with you if you're with someone else. I deserve better. And Piper deserves better. She cares about you. I refuse to be the person that ruins her happiness." She turns and walks away.

Jason smiles at her retreating back. His mind is made up, but she's right. Piper does deserve better, and he knows what he needs to do.

When he exits, Reyna is nowhere to be seen. He takes a step forward but someone steps quickly in front of him and he is suddenly confronted by a pair of angry kaleidoscopic eyes.

"Jason what is going on?" she demands.

He takes a deep breath trying to think how he's going to explain all this to her without hurting her. But he realizes that he can't avoid that. He's already hurt her, already been unfaithful to her. "Piper," he says with a pained expression.

Her eyes widen – she realizes the truth. Her face contorts into a disgusted expression and she backs away from him.

"Piper," he says again, reaching out for her. But she shakes her head, turns around, and walks away. He's about to follow her but suddenly Leo runs up to him.

"Hey man, the real show's about to start. Come on!" He looks around. "Have you seen Piper?"

"Yea. She just ran off. Towards the festival I think."

"Ok. Well let's catch up to her. You don't want to miss the show!"

Jason nods and together they head back towards the busy street.

They find her standing in the middle of the crowd, staring resolutely at the band playing on stage, arms crossed across her chest in a defensive position.

"Ok you two wait here. I gotta make sure no one blows themselves up!" Leo says and then runs off in the direction of the Vulcan forges.

"Piper we need to talk," Jason murmurs softly.

"There's nothing to talk about," she spits.

"I need to explain-"

"You made yourself loud and clear when you… you fucked her!" she yells angrily. Thankfully the place is too loud for anyone to take any notice of them. Her eyes are blazing with anger, but her slur angers him as well.

"No one fucked anyone. It's called making love. And it's completely different from fucking," he replies quietly but coldly. But he takes a deep breath – he is at fault and she has every right to be angry. "Piper nothing I say can excuse what happened and I'm not asking you to forgive and forget. The truth is we can't. We can't forget and that's the problem."

She looks carefully at him. Then she too takes a deep breath and uncrosses her arms. "We should probably go somewhere quiet."

He nods and leads her over to a park bench where they can still observe the crowd and festivities but can speak privately. The minute they sit he begins to speak, wanting to get everything out before he loses his nerve in the face of her questions. "I was happy with you Piper. So happy. Those months at Camp Half Blood have been so peaceful and spending the days with you was more than I could ask for. I felt free and it felt good being with you. I thought I loved you – felt I loved you. When my memories first started returning I remembered that there was someone named Reyna and that maybe she was something… something more to me. But being with you made me forget those feelings… made them go away and I thought if you could forget those kinds of feelings so easily then maybe they don't actually mean anything. So I stopped trying to remember that there might be someone waiting for me and just enjoyed being with you. Because you loved me and I loved being with you. When I came back here I still felt that way."

She opens her mouth to say something, at the same time reaching out for his hand, but he pulls away and silences her. "No let me finish, please." She pulls back and clamps her mouth shut.

After I visited her the first night, something started to feel wrong. I felt like I was missing something… something that only felt right when I was with Reyna. I can't explain it… there's this weird attraction between the two of us, and you could probably call it lust, but nothing feels right without her. Last night she told me she was letting me go and when I watched her walk away, Piper, I… I couldn't breathe. Up until that moment I hadn't realized how much she was a part of me. She came into my life and she made me part of her and some way along the way I made her a part of me and I can't… don't want to be… without that part. Mentally I don't remember why I feel this way… I don't remember being with her in this way… but something in here…" he says tapping the place on his chest where his heart would be, "something in here still knows. I can't…"

"Jason, enough," Piper whispers softly. He looks up to meet her gaze expecting to find hatred, but instead he's met with eyes full of pain, yes, but also, surprisingly, understanding.

"I can't pretend that doesn't hasn't hurt me. You've been so distant since we've come back and watching you with her…" She breaks off and sighs resignedly. "Well watching you with her, maybe I knew that there was something there, and I just didn't want to admit it. When you talked about her at camp I thought maybe she would have some kind of crush on you, but that day in the Senate… the way she talked about you… how she would follow you anywhere… well I realized then. She loves you. She loves you in a way that I don't. And the way you two fought over breakfast that morning…. I wished we'd had a fight like that. It's the people we love most that we let ourselves be angry with. They're the ones we fight with like that. You love her but you just couldn't realize it."

"Piper, you don't have to say all this. You shouldn't be understanding. You should be furious!" Jason says in frustration. He doesn't want people to tell him that he's doing the right thing when he's obviously hurting someone important him.

Instead she laughs, even though a tear trickles down her cheek. "Oh Jason. You're always so noble. You want me to hate you because you think you've done me some great injustice. Jason, I am the daughter of a goddess of love. I know true love when I see it, even if the people involved don't realize it. I can't hate you or Reyna for something both of you have felt long before I even came into the picture. Staying with me would be an injustice… to all three of us. I would hate myself to see you unhappy and know that I am the person standing in the way of your happiness."

He smiles grimly. "That's the second time someone has said that me in the past half-hour." He reaches over and pulls her into a hug. "Piper, I'm sorry."

"I know you are. But stop being noble and try to be happy for once."

He's about to reply when suddenly the whole boulevard goes dark. They are surprised and terrified shouts, but a moment later small twinkling lights pierce through the darkness like little fireflies. They begin swaying as if pushed by a breeze, but soon Jason realizes they're actually performing an old Roman dance routine and he relaxes. He looks over at Piper and grins. "Leo," they both say at the same time. She puts her head on his shoulder and together they watch the little mechanic fireflies perform. First they dance, then they re-enact Julius Caesar's great victories, then they ritualize a Roman triumph, and they finally come to rest on Jason's and Reyna's head as laurel wreaths to crown the city's Praetors before flying skyward where they explode into a million different colours. The lights come back on to a thunderous round of applause. The band thanks the mechanics for the show and begin the final song of the evening.

"What do you say? One last dance?" he asks standing up and offering his hand to Piper. She smiles and takes it. And so they dance their final dance, not as lovers, or exes looking hatefully on the past, but as friends looking promisingly to the future.

Reyna is exhausted. She said so many thank yous and accepted so many compliments on a job well done (to which she'd replied that it was all Dakota's, and to which everyone still insisted that she'd done an amazing job) that right now her mind couldn't even process the keys to her villa. After much fumbling, she finally manages to let herself in, switch on some lights and make it to her bed. She lies down for a minute, her eyes squeezed shut. She sees herself wrapped around Jason, and something warm fills her chest. But then she remembers him sitting on the park bench with Piper, her head on his shoulder, and the way he'd danced with her after, and the cold emptiness she's been carrying around for months now returns. She sighs, gets up, strips down, and heads into the shower. She lets the hot water run down her skin, washing off his scent, and the feel of him on her. She imagines the water washing away her memories of him, imagines them running down her body, pulled towards the drainage hole. She imagines them swirl violently for a minute and then visualizes the final drop out of sight. But it doesn't make her feel any better. The emptiness persists and she wonders if she'll ever feel whole without him. She sighs again, finishes her shower, and just pulls on some underwear. She robotically turns off the lights and then curls up under her blankets, her fingers curling over the spot where just months before he would sometimes lie next to her, and slowly she drifts off to sleep.

She's dreaming of him. At first it's just feelings: his lips on hers, his lips on her skin, him deep inside her. But soon the dream brightens and it's an old memory.

_They're crouched behind a large rock just below the entrance to the palace on Mount Orthrys, armor dented, skin covered in dirt, blood, and soot, surrounded by several other demigods looking the worse for wear. Battle cries and shrieks of pain and the dying hem them in, but all that mattered to her in the moment was him. She was probably going to die out there and there were so many things she'd never had the chance to say to him. She looked out over the battle, strategically taking stock of how many enemies bore down upon them. Too many to count. _

_"__Well Grace, it's been nice knowing you," she joked. _

_"__Yea you too-" But seeing the look in her eyes, he stopped joking. "You're coming back."_

_She shrugged. "Statistically speaking, I have a higher chance of being skewered by the Erymantian Boar out there than I do of making it back to Camp…"_

_"__Reyna. YOU. ARE. COMING. BACK," he had said simply and clearly, enunciating every word._

_She rolled her eyes at him. "Listen Jason, before I go you should probably know that…" But she had trailed off when she noticed him pulling the necklace off from around his neck. He held it out to her. Her eyes widened and she shook her head. _

_"__Take it," he said._

_"__I can't take that!" she glowered._

_"__Take it!" he said again, this time more forcefully._

_"__Jason that ring on that necklace is the only thing you have left of your mom. You can't give that me!" she replied motioning to the ring dangling at the bottom of the necklace. _

_He rolled his eyes and stretched out to clasp it around her neck. "I'm not giving it you. You're right, it's all I have left of her, so you better bring it back," he stated staring pointedly at her. _

_She understood: he was telling her to come back to him. He was making her swear that she would come back to him, that he needed her to come back to him. And that was it: the moment when she finally knew what she'd been feeling all those years. "Jason I-"_

_But a loud explosion disrupted any kind of discussion of sentiment, instead forcing them out from behind their hiding place and into the line of fire._

"Jason," she murmurs in her sleep.

"I'm here," someone whispers back. "Reyna, I'm here."

She's still dreaming she tells herself, and then the voice begins to hum _their_ song and she knows that she's definitely dreaming. But then warm arms wrap around her, and she feels safe and warm, and she starts to wonder if she could dream something like that with all that emptiness in her. She's loathe to open her eyes, not wanting to let go of the dream.

"Reyna, I love you," the voice – _his_ voice - murmurs into her ear, right into her soul, and her eyes shoot open. If this was a dream she didn't want to dream this. It sounded too good and she doesn't want to know how those words sound coming from him. She jumps up and looks around. The arms relinquish her – but only for a moment – and soon they're closing around her once again. Kisses are pressed to her head, the corner of her left eye, her left cheek, down to her left jaw, towards her lips, but she pulls back before they can reach them.

She sees him, his blue eyes clear and strong. He's looking at her, seeing right into her, and this can't be real – can it?

"Jason?"

"I'm here."

She reaches out and her fingertips brush against his jaw. She leans closer so she can breathe in his air, so she can breathe him in. "You're here."

He smirks at her. His fingers tap the necklace around her neck. "I told you to bring that back to me, but I also meant that I would always come back to it… to you. I love you Reyna."

She breathes out and that breath carries the coldness out of her. He loves her, he's here with her, and nothing else matters. She presses her lips to his, finally connecting them. She pulls away to say "I love you," and she's kissing him again, and saying it over and over and over because she can't say it enough, can't make him understand just how much she does. So she does what feels right. She pushes him flat on the bed and straddles him. He knows what's happening and he helps her out of her underwear even as she pulls his clothes off. She's kissing him deeply and roughly and he's kissing her just as deeply and she can't remember to breathe properly but it doesn't matter. He's here and she can feel that he wants her so she pulls him deep inside her, and feeling him fill her inside is all that matters. He's come back to her and she's whole and nothing else matters – nothing at all. And he's the one she's calling out for when she peaks – her world once again narrowed to him.

Later, they lie awake in each other's arms – both on their backs, his right arm winding under and around her waist, and her right hand fingers intertwined with his. Neither wants to waste time sleeping – preferring to spend every second with the other. He turns his head towards her and nuzzles her.

"We should sleep," he whispers.

She smiles – the slow, sex one, the one that drives him crazy, the one she reserves for him alone. "Mmmm-hmmmm," she murmurs.

The excitement from making love is wearing off and they're both drifting off, but she manages to say, "I love you," once more before he's lost to his dream world.

There is some love that transcends memory and mind – a great love that doesn't require the mind to remember every detail. The heart knows where it belongs, knows its home, and Reyna's last thought before she's lost in oblivion is that her great love lies in her arms and that he has come back to her – as he always will. And she finally sleeps – deeply and peacefully – the knowledge giving her lasting comfort.

**Well there it is! Please leave your last reviews - those would be much appreciated! Thank you all for reading, liking, following, and leaving your reviews! I really really am grateful for it guys! :) :)**


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